Road To Master
by Nightshock5
Summary: In a new Universe: Ash has a dark past that eats him. After thinking about his past, Ash decides to begin his journey in Kalos along with a wild Pikachu he befriends. Along with a strong team, Ash will take on his strongest challenge yet! (Amourshipping) What will happen when Ash challenges the Pokemon League? Will he win? Will his father haunt his head? T for Violence
1. Chapter 1

**Road to Master**

 **Brought to you by, Nightshock5**

 **A/N: Hey guys, welcome to my second fic. I actually am going to try and recreate the Kalos Journey for Ash after the 7th gym. This won't be in ways like the anime and Ash will have a darker and more mysterious personality that is on top of his cheerful and energetic personality. Not only that, this will be like Ash's first journey too.**

 **I want to mention that in this story I am not going to make Calem a bad guy like in the other one. He will actually be pretty cool and even though this is amourshipping he will not get in the way of things… I got his name right this time around as well xD.**

 **I also want to mention that some of the stuff that happens may be similar to the anime and it does not happen necessarily in the xy/xyz series or the same way, but it is only if those things are amazing in the anime.**

 **First chapter and something is already revealed about Ash, keep that in mind. Hint: This Ash has a dark past and had a rough time before becoming a trainer. Also, Ash is not just "Ash Ketchum" himself, we have another character mixed in. Instead of making this like Yu-Gi-Oh as like a Yugi/Atem thing, I decided to just completely merge two characters with Ash being the name and physical appearance… Also Amourshipping is Amourshipping don't think I am shipping Serena with the other character that Ash is merged with as well xD.**

 **Also I would like to thank my beta reader Hunter for helping me start this fic at an amazing note!**

 **Without further ado, let's get right into it!**

 **Disclaimer: There is blood in this fanfic and there will probably be some blood this chapter too.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or Stronger, so Kanye please don't take down my fic… this is barely the first chapter D:**

Chapter 1- Ambush and Deadly Encounter

 **Team Flare base, unknown location:**

"Calem, are you ready to go in?" a raven haired teenager with a Pikachu asked as the group of two teenagers and two pokemon went up to a door that they sneaked to get to.

"Sure am Ash," the teenager that responds to the name Calem said, he had a Chesnaught next to him ready to strike at any moment.

"Alright," the other teenager called Ash said. Ash was wearing a black jacket to avoid getting recognised but he kept his light blue scarf and red cap. "I think we should have brought Tierno and Trevor here though."

 **(Quickly, if you have not figured out the scarf yet, I will reveal it in the last A/N.)**

"I agree, but they are too far away, going to Glorio to be exact, they are still on the road," Calem replied. The two trainers were standing in front of a door. The door had the words "Team Flare" on it. No one was around and the coast was clear. Evidently, something was going on inside.

"What about the girls?" Ash asked. "Will they be safe?"

"They are in Anistar city right now, this morning, I left them together saying that we will meet up with them later… Sorry I didn't tell you sooner, I know how protective you are of Serena," Calem replied making Ash nod in approval. "Let's get this over with so that we do not have to wait any longer. Objective, get the core freed and get out."

"Right! Charmeleon use dragon claw and break through!" Ash exclaimed as he threw a pokeball. A Charmeleon came out of a bright light with something peculiar. This Charmeleon had a harness with a blue stone in the middle that had a double helix DNA-like symbol on it.

"Char meeee leon!" Chameleon shouted as he made green scaly claws with his hand and slashed in an X like fashion. After a second, the door completely fell into the building in four pieces.

"Good Charmeleon, return!" Ash said as he recalled Charmeleon to his pokeball. Ash then put the pokeball in his belt and studied the challenge he and Calem were going to have to overcome. Ash and Pikachu then ran i in first. "Come on Calem!"

Both trainers ran into the building. Both had their partner's next to them. They ran towards another door. This time the door opened by itself due to motion detectors opening the hinges of the door. When Ash and Calem were about to walk through the door, they got hit with a terrible surprise standing with crossed arms at the other end of the door.

"Well well well, we have intruders," a woman with blue hair and goggles replied standing at the other end of the doors. She had an orange suit and behind her was a Drapion. "Drapion use pin missile!"

"Counter with your pin missile!" Calem shouted. Chesnaught shot it's own pin missiles that met up with the Drapion's pin missile leaving the woman and her Drapion motionless from the explosion that occurred.

"Pikachu, thunderbolt!"

"Pika...CHUUUU!" Pikachu shouted while shooting a beam of electricity that was directed right at the Drapion and the team Flare grunt. This caused an explosion that made both Drapion and the woman fall defeated to the ground with burn marks from the electricity.

"This is not over, Lysandre has a recruit that is even stronger than him! You will not win!" the woman groaned in the ground. Her body was crackling with electricity. Ash and Calem along with their pokemon walked around the woman that was on the ground, but soon footsteps could be heard throughout the building and Ash and Calem identified what it belonged to in a second:

Team Flare Grunts.

"Run Ash!" Calem shouted as team flare grunts rushed the two teenagers from behind them. Both trainers started running to get to their mission attempting to avoid at all costs being found again and very cautious as to not get cornered.

Suddenly, a blaring alarm went off in the base. Ash and Calem both covered their ears in desperation while Pikachu and Chesnaught used their moves to destroy the alarms and prevent the blaring distraction.

The hallways were lined with rooms. All of these rooms had no interest to Ash and Calem, they were in for the room in the end of the hallway. The lighting turned a red dim as team flare grunts kept trying to enclose the intruders to the secret base.

The trainers kept running until they reached a large room. This room had what looked like a enclosed tree in the middle. The fence was made of glass and inside the fence Ash and Calem saw a small pokemon. It was green, squishy and had a red core in the middle.

"There it is," Ash whispered. Calem nodded. "We need to help it before it can transform to 100% form. If that happens then…"

"Don't say what will happen," Calem shuddered and looked at the pokemon with fear as well. The stakes were high for Ash and Calem at this point.

"Apply power, we will make this Zygarde into its 10% form," one of the men handling machines instructed.

"Affirmative, start the procedure," another grunt said.

Ash and Calem watched in awe as the tree glowed green. Suddenly, the small green core turned into a dog-like form that growled around the cage in a violent manner.

The grunts started to clap as they saw the transformation be a success. It was evident that they had been developing this experiment for years and did not want Ash and Calem to be in the way.

"Now!" Calem shouted. Both trainers lept from their hiding spots.

"Pikachu thunderbolt lets go!" Ash shouted while pumping his fist with one hand and putting his hand out with the other.

"Pika… CHUUUU!" Pikachu shouted as he enveloped himself in electricity. After he got super charged up, Pikachu leaped into the air and shot the yellow beam of crackling electricity towards his target.

"Chesnaught hit the wall with wood hammer!"

Chesnaught then charged up his left arm and materialized a green log of energy. Chesnaught then swung his large arm around and headed it straight for the destination of Pikachu's thunderbolt.

Both moves collided with the glass and broke it in a decently sized explosion thus freeing the Zygarde from the grasps of Team Flare. The dog like pokemon then lept out of the area and ran off leaving a huge trail of green particles and energy. The pokemon was gone at a really fast speed and no one saw the direction it went.

"Success, let's get out of here!" Ash exclaimed as he and Calem started to run off to safety and escape the base… But that thought was a little too late.

"There they are! Get them!" the men shouted from behind Ash and duo along with their pokemon ran into a larger room. Now they were trapped since the room had no way out, they had to get through five grunts.

"What do we do now?" Calem asked as the grunts rushed the trainers.

"We fight! Frogadier use cut and shake these guys!" Ash shouted as he launched the pokeball and revealed an agile Frogadier that appeared in a ninja pose. "Pikachu thunderbolt lets go!"

One of the grunts took a swing at Chesnaught, but he used spiky shield to defend himself and defeat the grunt. Another grunt was beaten down by Frogadier who had used cut… For Ash it was watery… like a bluish fluid color that only he could see.

Ash was in a fist fight with one of the bigger grunts. Ash hit him in the jaw and tripped him. When the grunt tried to punch Ash, he blocked it and kicked the grunt in the balls thus defeating him with one last blow to the head. Ash had learned to fight throughout his past, constantly getting into fights with strangers in Lumiose for his survival.

Pikachu engaged a battle with a grunt that managed to hit Pikachu hard in the stomach. When Ash saw this, pure anger boiled through his entire body. As an instant of instinct and nervousness for Pikachu, Ash rushed over and hit the man in the head thus knocking him out in one blow that Ash never would have ever imagined possible. "Never mess with my pokemon!" Ash shouted in agitation to get his best friend back.

More grunts piled in through the door ready to fight, but Ash ran over to Pikachu. As soon as he reached the electric rodent that was on the ground,Ash grabbed his defeated friend in his arms and checked on him to make sure Pikachu was in enough condition to battle through. Ash noticed Pikachu would be fine, but battling was out of the picture at this point which meant he needed to resort to something else.

"Chesnaught pin missile on all of them! Then use wood hammer on the door to jam it!" Calem shouted while pumping his fist towards the direction that the grunts were coming from. Chesnaught obeyed, he launched pin missile and hit every grunt that it could thus knocking them to the ground unconscious. After that, Chesnaught hit the door with wood hammer thus ending the flow of grunts. "Ash, how are you holding up?" Calem asked as he walked over to his friend in concern.

"Fine, but Pikachu got hit hard," Ash said while looking up at Calem. "Pikachu needs to recover." Ash then turned to Frogadier who had helped him with his battles with grunts and pulled out a pokeball. "Frogadier, thank you for battling and helping," Ash explained as he recalled his aquatic frog into red energy which dissipated into the pokeball.

"Good, let's leave," Calem started.

Looking around, the area was filled with bodies on the ground. It was a very unpleasant sight for anyone. Ash and Calem began to rush out through the opening hoping to get away from the slaughter fest they had created…

But something, or should i say, someone interrupted them:

"Not so fast!" a new voice exclaimed. Out of the shadows appeared a man. "It seems you were going to leave without some fun, don't be so rude."

"Leave us alone!" Ash shouted. Ash did find this man familiar, he had pale skin with some small Z marks on his cheeks, raven hair like his own, but the hair was auburn with the addition of a red cap. He was tall and had a red jacket with a white undershirt, he looked nothing like a team flare grunt… But like an older version of Ash.

"I am the best battler in team flare, my name is Ashura," the man smirked at Ash as he expected some sort of reaction. Ash was looking only at the man called Ashura with fear and fire in his eyes while grabbing Pikachu in his arms.

Ash's eyes widened in horror and everlasting emotional pain that is out to get him. 'No, it can't be, can it?!' Ash closed his eyes and began to shiver with severe irritation that coursed through his veins and arteries. With that, Ash gritted his teeth together and clenched his fists together. After some time, Ash's fists began to drip red liquid: blood. Reason being Ash's fingernails painlessly penetrating his skin since he is high on adrenaline.

Calem noticed Ash's reaction and put a hand on Ash's shoulder asking a question that would have an answer that would make Calem recoil in surprise, "Ash are you ok?"

"YOU TRAITOR! YOU COULD HAVE SAVED HER BUT YOU HELPED KILL HER HOW COULD YOU?!" Ash shouted through gritted teeth and clenched fists with a tone so venomous it made even Pikachu flinch.

"Hmm, so I see that you have grown into a fine young man Ash, or should I say son?" Ashura replied. "Now, let's have a deal, we have a one on one battle and if you win I let you go, if you lose you end up like your mother."

Calem's eyes widened at the revelation of Ash's father. "Ash, we can find another way!" Calem shouted to Ash who had red hands from the blood.

Ash acknowledged Calem, but set Pikachu down in a safe place near Calem before turning to Calem. "I have no choice…" Ash replied as he took out a pokeball and nervously put it on his hands. He then turned to Ashura and told himself to talk without thinking, he said: "I accept your challenge!"

"I will give you one last chance, join me and together we will take over!" Ashura shouted while pumping his fist at Ash.

"NEVER!" Ash screamed through emotional pain. "Grovyle I choose you!" Ash threw the pokeball revealing a green bipedal tree frog that had a twig toothpick on his mouth. Ash would have chosen Frogadier, but he was acting strange lately. This was the next best thing to speed and stealth he could get.

"Grovyle!" the pokemon shouted while putting his arm out in a defensive stance.

"Calem, get out of here, it is too dangerous," Ash said said calmly while glaring at the friend he had next to him.

"Ash, I won't leave you!" Calem said while pumping his fist and a determined face. "I will fight with you, this is our fight!"

"Thanks Calem," Ash replied with a weak smile, but then that smile turned into a complete face of irritation and pain as he turned back to Ashura.

"I am so proud of you son, you have actually made a friend, too bad it is the last time you see one of them, Darkrai battle stance!" Ashura taunted with arms crossed. "Good luck Ash, but you won't ever beat me unless you get lucky…"

 **Here you can play Battle Music. Ash (Grovyle) vs Ashura (Darkrai):**

Both pokemon stared at each other. Grovyle sensed Ash's pain and knew he could not lose, for his trainer's sake. Darkrai seemed like a hard opponent, but with Ash, Grovyle knew he could pull of anything.

"Grrr… use leaf storm!" Ash shouted intensely through a pumping of a bloody red fist. Grovyle out his hands together and then released from his hands a barrage of leafs spiraling in a large wind that was headed for Darkrai. Ashura seemed amused by the amount of power being displayed as he viewed his son as a powerful threat he needed to eliminate. Ash though, he was in a state of depression and pain due to having to battle his own father.

"hmmm…. Dark pulse," Ashura calmly said with crossed arms. Darkrai looked at the incoming leaf beam and put his hands together as well. Suddenly from the arms came a dark gaia beam headed for the leaf storm that was already sent. The two moves collided in a stalemate in the middle, but slowly dark pulse overpowered and started to creep up on Grovyle. With a large bang, Grovyle fell in front of Ash with dark electricity surging through him. "Now use thunder!" Ashura shouted. Darkrai got enveloped in an electric aura and shot a beam at Grovyle. Grovyle was stuck in the electric beam being too weak to move thus taking the entire shock and causing an explosion in front of Ash in which Grovyle was on the ground motionless.

"Grovyle no!" Ash exclaimed at his fallen pokemon. From the side, Calem and Pikachu watched in worry their pain stricken friend losing the battle.

"Gro…" Grovyle groaned as he got up slowly looking at Darkrai with a lot amount of pain.

"Grovyle stay strong," Ash exclaimed as he watched his father prepare for whatever the next move will bring. Ash then threw his hand out and exclaimed, "Leaf blade!"

"Vyle!" Grovyle shouted as he curved the lateral portion of his arms to fork a green blade. Then, he started to run at the pitch black pokemon that was in front of him. This time, Ashura just kept his arms crossed and did not look at Ash. Darkrai took the two blades in a cross like fashion and then fell back in front of Ashura who seemed a little amused by testing Ash's power.

"Darkrai use thunder once again!" Ashura finally commanded with crossed arms. Darkrai charged his electricity and once again shot the electrical beam at Grovyle, but this time, Ash was prepared.

"Grovyle quick use razor leaf on roof!" Ash exclaimed with urgency. Grovyle quickly gained his composure and shot three leafs up at the roof that cut some of the sprinklers into spraying water towards the ground and unconscious bodies. "Now avoid any water that could be sent your way!"

"Gro… Gro… Grovyle!" Grovyle exclaimed as he jumped out of the water that was now showering down. Instead of colliding with Grovyle, the thunder streaked the air and hit the water which caused a lot of dispersion among the thunder throughout the area. The lightning then sparkled in a few spots in which Ash sighed in relief.

Ashura was in complete awe at how Ash was able to escape the attack, but decided it was best to try and end this very fast, "Use dark pulse!" By surprise, Ash recoiled as he saw the dark pulse streak the air with dead on accuracy and strike Grovyle who was avoiding the water. Grovyle got hit in an explosion that sent him tumbling to a nearby puddle and then stood up slightly with his legs still in the puddle. "Now use thunder on the water!" Ashura exclaimed with a pumped fist.

"Dark… RAI!" Darkrai shot his beam at the water from the sprinklers and caused the electricity to be conducted… At Grovyle.

"Grovyle NO!" Ash exclaimed and recoiled as he watched his tree frog be shocked from the attack. Grovyle then got involved in a large explosion that when the smoke cleared, Grovyle was on his knees barely standing and with electricity around him.

Suddenly…

Grovyle began to glow green.

"Overgrow…." Calem muttered to himself.

"Pika…" Pikachu said to himself too.

Ash seemed to know what was going on as he grew nervous once he saw Grovyle stand up and begin to exclaim, "GROVYLE!"

"GROVYLE CONTROL YOURSELF!" Ash shouted in urgency knowing this was not good.

 **Flashback:**

"Tree… CCCKKKOOOOOO!" Treecko shouted while glowing green and charging at a Heatmor with razor leaf.

"Treecko NO!" Ash exclaimed as he got in front of Treeko and taking the hit. The razor leafs penetrated Ash's skin and made him bleed from the attack. Treecko did not care less and attempted to use another attack.

"Heatmor stop him with fire lash!" A trainer exclaimed while looking worried at Ash.

"HeatMOR!" Heatmor exclaimed as a lash of fire enveloped Treecko. Ash now find the safe time to recall Treecko back to his pokeball and the other trainer ran up to Ash to help him with his wounds.

Ash looked at Treecko's pokeball with awe unable to comprehend what happened.

 **End of Flashback:**

"I am going to finish this fast," Ashura said while throwing out his fist. "Dark void!" Darkrai made a dark orb and shot it at the green glowing Grovyle. Grovyle instantly fell asleep when the dark void engulfed Grovyle in a black energy. "Now use dream eater!" Ashura said while crossing his arms and ignoring the overgrow.

Darkrai had a shadow leave its body and taunted Grovyle. As soon as the shadow made contact, Grovyle flinched in pain and arched back. The shadow then returned to Darkrai leaving the sleeping and turning Grovyle on the floor. Grovyle was still in a bad nightmare that Ash could barely watch.

"Grovyle! I know you are in there! Hear me out, we can do this!" Ash yelled trying to get a response, but things began to look faded for him from the blood loss in his bloody red fists.

 **Inside the dream:**

Grovyle was being taunted by many shadows, all of them launching attacks at him. It was completely dark, but the overgrow served as a green light source for the frightened Grovyle. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a light came that called out to him.

"Grovyle, I need you to wake up! I believe in you! The fate of everyone is in your hands and I know you can protect it!" a voice called.

Grovyle ran into the voice and light to reappear at the battlefield like if he had not fallen asleep. Grovyle felt determined and inspired so much that he reached a new level of being.

 **Back at the battle:**

"Grovyle you are awake!" Ash exclaimed to his now standing Grovyle with slight happiness, but intense fatigue.

 **Play Nightcore- Stronger**

 _Na-na-na that that don't kill me_  
 _Can only make me stronger_  
 _I need you to hurry up now_  
 _'Cause I can't wait much longer..._

"GroooVYYLEEE!" Grovyle shouted as the green glow he had began to glow blue and Grovyle's figure started growing bigger. Grovyle gained a bright green coloration with trees on his tail. Not only that, but Grovyle also gained stronger looking blades. The green glow was more violent than ever.

 _Work it, make it, do it,_  
 _Makes us harder, better, faster, stronger!_

"Is it…" Ash started.

"It evolved!" Calem said in shock.

"SCEPTILE!" the newly evolved pokemon cried with a green glow that sent a green shockwave throughout the battlegrounds. Ashura could only stare in awe.

"Congratulations Ash, but this may very well be the last evolution you see," Ashura smirked while putting his hands out. "Use dark void again!"

"We'll see about that! Use razor leaf!" Ash exclaimed. Sceptile, though, surprised Ash by instead thrusting his fist into the ground in front of him. The move that came out was not razor leaf though, a large plant came through the earth and grabbed Darkrai. Darkrai was unable to make its move after this.

"That's frenzy plant!" Calem told the dumbstruck trainer. Ash smirked at the sight of the new move.

 _Work it, make it, do it,_  
 _Makes us harder, better, faster, stronger!_

"PIKA!" Pikachu exclaimed in awe.

"Sceptile leaf blade!" Ash shouted. Sceptile lept up and hit Darkrai head on with leaf blade and then Sceptile turned around and turned its leaf blade into a green scaly claw and struck Darkrai again. Dragon claw… Sceptile also learned dragon claw to Ash's surprise.

 _Work it, make it, do it,_  
 _Makes us harder, better, faster, stronger!_

"Use thunder!" Ashura exclaimed as Darkrai was too weak to use another attack. "Grr… this isn't over, I will get you back!" Ashura shouted while pointing at Ash and recalling his defeated pokemon. "You may have gotten lucky that Sceptile evolved today, but you won't be so lucky next time just because you defeated my weakest pokemon," Ashura said as he vanished into thin air to Ash's surprise.

Ash fell over to his knees panting while trying to keep his composure. The blood loss had gotten to him, but he knew he could make it if he hanged in there. His fists were still bright red, but the wounds clotted due to the increased circulation of blood during the battle. He looked over at his pocket and took out a box with the picture of his mother, the blood slightly staining the picture. 'I will avenge you,' Ash thought.

"pikapi!"

"Scep!" Sceptile exclaimed not glowing green anymore.

"Ash are you ok?" Calem asked his friend as Ash caught his breath.

"Yea, thanks guys," Ash said.

"Good, let's get out of here," Calem assured.

"Sceptile, thank you for everything," Ash stated as he recalled Sceptile to his pokeball.

"Alright, let's leave," Calem said as he and Ash left the room.

Unbeknownst to them, the entire battle was caught on camera and recorded by a snooping security camera that is property of the Pokemon League.

 **Somewhere far away:**

The Kalos Champion looked at the video and was amazed by the battle, "A strong trainer, wow, I will show this to the elite four… I want to meet this person."

This person then rewinded the entire to battle to study every single move that happened. She then went to the computer and thought to herself. 'I have to show this to the mega evolution trainers as well'.

She put the video into a file and put it as an attachment to be sent electronically. She then clicked on "send to" and clicked on "mega evolution trainers recorded throughout Kalos". After that, she clicked "send".

 **Back at the team flare base:**

Ash and Calem were leaving slowly the now empty base… Slowly dragging themselves... when the peace was broken, "SELF DESTRUCT INITIATED, BUILDING WILL EXPLODE IN ONE MINUTE!" an alarm blared. The flashing light all glew red and the panic came with the trainers.

Suddenly, the base started to shake and collapse, a rock almost hitting Ash, but missed by a couple inches.

"RUN!" Ash shouted as Calem recalled his Chesnaught and Ash carried his Pikachu in his arms which was still injured. The corridor was the same one they went through, but it was empty as people had left to trap the trainers here.

The exit through where the two trainers then entered was eminent. The two trainers ran, despite their fatigue through the door only to be met by the light of the moonlight that replaced the red glare that the base had. The two trainers ran as far as they could up a hill that was approximately 800 meters from the base.

Ash and Calem found themselves running up the hill with a lot of exhaustion, but did not stop as they needed to get to safety.

Suddenly, the panting and sounds of feet hitting the ground was inundated with an earthshaking sound that anyone could swear could be heard from miles away-

 **"BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM!"** a strong sound killed the silence between the two trainers as they felt their ears pop to the sound and saw the sky and ground light up at the moment of the explosion and then disappear.

The two teenagers slowly turned around and saw a blaze erupting through the building they escaped. The smoke was billowing from the fire of the not so secret base anymore, but a giant hole in the ground with a burning building on top of it…

Nothing was left.

The trainers decided to take the time to rest, so Ash and Calem sat on the ground catching their breath as Ash gave Pikachu some Oran berries for the electric mouse's lack of energy. Minutes later, the duo saw news helicopters reporting over the explosion. Obviously it came to no surprise that anyone could have seen the explosion from the nearest town.

Ash sighed, "I guess we are going to get a lot of attention."

"Yea," Calem replied as he stood up and started talking again. "Hey, I would like to stay longer, but I have go to Glorio City, the girls are headed there for the master class," Calem said. "It starts in a couple of days, so I am going to get a head start to hang out with Shauna." Calem then revealed a Talonflame and hopped on. "See ya later Ashy-Boy!" Calem teased as he flew off while waving at Ash from his fire falcon.

Ash sighed, he still had no flying type other than Noivern, but he did not want to fly, specially in this condition, so he decided to walk, maybe he would meet someone on the way. He was near Anistar anyways. He still did not know the main reason why he went to these showcases, but he still went and supported his best friend. Something about her made him keep going to her performances to see what she would pull off. Something he would understand… soon enough.

 **Back at Anistar:**

"Shauna, I think it is time we headed over to Glorio for the master class," A honey blond with short hair started. This girl had a light red dress with a red top. She wore a red fedora with a pair of brown boots. Her oceanic blue eyes matched with the blue ribbon she wore on the top of her dress, that was given to her by someone special. "We have our three princess keys and the master class starts soon, a week to be exact, what are we waiting for?"

"Yea, I think so too, Serena," the girl called Shauna replied. Shauna had long brown hair and a nice pink top. She also had a slightly darker tone in skin with olive green eyes. "After I eat, I guess."

The girls were in the middle of a meal in which they were eating dessert. After they finished their chocolate cake, the duo payed the bill and went outside to the dark air of Anistar City. In the distance the sun dial was visible through the night star filled sky that cloaked Kalos. It was night time, but it was not like that stopped our heroes from travelling as they were about to head on their next big adventure.

"Alright Shauna, I think it's time to go!" Serena exclaimed while grabbing a blue ribbon on top of her red dress. It was an involuntary action that Serena has done throughout her journey to represent… something interesting.

"I always meant to ask you, is that the ribbon that Ash gave you?" Shauna asked with a curious face that made Serena tense every muscle in her body.

"ummm… yeah," Serena replied while blushing and gripping the ribbon with more strength. It was a way to calm herself down that worked a lot during the most stressful times of travelling.

"I have a feeling he will be there," Shauna replied with a wink. Then, Shauna took out a pokeball and revealed a Tropius. Shauna got on and flew off while yelling at Serena, "See you there, gonna try to spend time with Calem!"

Serena sighed as she saw Shauna leave. Serena then looked at the paved path under her feet turn into a dirt road in front of her. The dirt road led to a route in direction towards Glorio City…

Maybe she would meet someone on the way.

 **A/N: Alright this is the beginning of the fic. Ash had just earned his 7th gym badge and he is headed to the master class. Next chapter, we understand Ash's conflict and the beginning of the journey.**

 **Ok, Ash is not just Ash… He is a combination of Ash AND ALAIN. You can probably guess what Serena is... Don't worry, Mairin will appear later on and it will be interesting. Also Ash is against team flare in all of this.**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: ok this is the start of the prologue, to understand what happened last chapter, this will give you the answer. The prologue will be a couple of chapters long, but it will skip to right after the events of last chapter after the prologue. Know that the events of last chapter take place after the 7th gym.**

Disclaimer: I don't own pokemon

Chapter 2- Journeys Commence

 **Serena's house:**

Grace sighed as she flipped a pancake through her pan. Of course the smell of pancakes resonating through the house was not doing the effect it was and it frustrated Grace. Grace decided she had to use the last resort she commonly used, "Fletchling, could you go wake up Serena for me? Of course she sleeps in more than a teenage boy that stays up till 3:00 am writing fanfics, but it is not healthy for her."

"Fletch fletchling!" Fletching replied and flew up the stairs into Serena's room stealthily through the small crack in the door that lead into a room with a bed and a lot of pink walls. Fletchling then perched itself on top of a bulge in the bed. Fletchling then made his beak glow white and aimed right for the head of this figure, "FletchLING!"

Fletching has used peck on his sleeping beauty to wake her up, though she did not wake up in love, but furious of Fletchling's peck.

"Grrrr… come back here!" the girl screamed in pain as she held her head at the site of the peck. The girl then got up and stared into the eyes of that one menacing robin that just pecked her. She tried to grab fletchling but ended up missing and hitting her head with the side of the bed.

"Fletchling," the bird cried as it flew out the room with a hint of amusement for causing that much trouble with the girl. Of course it was funny for it since Fletchling always had to do it because of this girl's horrible temper. At this point the girl would always decide it was time to get up since the adrenaline that rushes through her from the surprise does not allow her to fall back asleep.

The girl walked up to the window thus opening it. The wind blew perfectly into her long honey blonde hair and dazzling electric blue eyes.

"Morning Rhyhorn!" the girl exclaimed as she greeted her friend in the front yard. "I think something interesting will happen today," She told herself as she pushed her hair back. She knew she was ready to start making a big step in her life… A chance to escape the past.

"Serena! Come down and eat your pancakes! You need to get ready for your day today! It is the start of your journey!" Grace exclaimed from downstairs. At the sound of her mother, the girl turned back to the door and looked through the crack to yell back.

"Coming mom!" the girl now known as Serena yelled back. Of course, this was the first day of her journey and she was ready to get a pokemon from professor Sycamore. She even knew what pokemon she was going to get… Oooh look at her, such a badass! **(Like me and Decidueye in Sun and Moon :D)**

Serena got dressed in a black top with a pink skirt and on her head she had a nice pink fedora. With that she went downstairs to eat breakfast. She sat down and started to eat her breakfast. Eggs and bacon along with pancakes and syrup. something Serena enjoyed to eat, especially when her mother made it (If you want it in pokemon terminology, Exeggcute and Grumpig)!

"Serena, have you decided what pokemon you are going to get?" Grace asked as she took a sip from her tea and eyeing Serena with amusement. Grace was excited for Serena's journey to start. Grace, being the Rhyhorn racer that she was, started her journey at the same age that Serena did and with that she was able to find her love of racing. She wants the same for Serena and as soon as Serena figured out that her friends were also starting her journeys, Grace encouraged Serena to start hers as well.

"Yea!" Serena replied with an excited tone thinking about the pokemon she was going to choose for her journey around her home region. As much as Serena wanted to simply say the name, she had a bigger desire to keep the pokemon a surprise. This pokemon appealed so much to Serena because of how the species is burning with elegancy and by just how adorable and lovable these creatures are.

"What is it?" Grace asked her daughter with a curious face.

"It's a secret," Serena responded with a wink… The trademark wink Serena always gives to her friends and family at surprises. After she finished breakfast, Serena grabbed her backpack and went out the door: She was ready to take her first step into her journey. "Bye mom!" Serena was excited, she wanted to leave just like anyone would for anything simply. Serena was so fast out the door that her mother gasped in shock as she went to say her goodbyes for now…

Serena was that excited to begin her journey.

"Remember to go for broke!" Grace instructed her daughter before Serena walked out of the door after saying goodbye to Rhyhorn who gave Serena one last playful lick.

"I prefer to say 'Don't give up until it is over'," Serena chuckled remembering the words that a certain influence has had on her since… Well, that is something that Serena will have to reveal herself sadly...

"Bye Serena, and remember that if someone you don't like asks you out on a date you show them a kick in the balls!" Grace replied with a snicker since she knew that Serena's looks would obviously attract the eyes of many boys, especially the teenagers. It is very common for boys to show up at Serena's house with flowers asking to even get to go on a date with Serena to her surprise… Of course Grace used these boys as punching bags for Serena. One kick in the balls and they will never come back is the philosophy Grace used with her daughter's love life, but of course, Grace knows someone will get through the wall eventually.

Serena grew annoyed at this and grew red in anger and embarrassment. Serena had learned how to do the kicking move and did not have to be reminded every day. "I know mom! Don't worry, I already know who I can allow near me!"

"Calem I am guessing?" Grace retaliated without knowing a crucial fact about an encounter Serena had with a certain boy at a summer camp. Grace always thought Calem was Serena's partner as she thought the boy was charming, but something about that boy was missing, so Grace may have figured the two were just good friends.

"No!" Serena flustered. "I only see him as a friend and Shauna already told me she has 'dibs' on him."

"Then who is it?" Grace asked with a look of "Gotcha I know there is someone that has your attention". Grace just loved to mess with Serena and this confirmed she had her eyes out for someone.

"None if your business!" Serena yelled as she ran out of her mom's sight and into the route after waving her mother good bye. She looked down into her pocket. 'If you even are anywhere near me, I will find you' Serena thought as she looked at a blue handkerchief. Serena would make it to Lumiose in no time at this rate and meet up with her friends.

Serena looked up in the bright and sunny day. She was excited and hopeful for a memorable journey…

And she will have one…

She will.

 **Lumiose City:**

It was a bright and sunny day in Lumiose. Fletchlings chirped, trainers and residents walked up the streets with pokemon living in complete harmony. Just a beautiful day to initialize a journey is what new trainers would think. Despite this fact, one person always dreaded everything thrown at him and is completely shadowed in the endoskeleton of Lumiose City.

A teenaged boy sat in a dark alley of Lumiose city, right next to him was a wild Pikachu. The boy looked in his pocket. There was a case that had the words Ash Ketchum on it. Inside this case was a picture of a lady that had brown hair and auburn eyes that resembled the boy's eyes holding the picture. Inside the case there was also a stone that had a DNA like symbol on it. "I'm sorry I left mom, I could not save you from him and I had to flee," the boy said with a tear rolling down his cheek and a defeated tone. He could still hear the sounds of the screaming that happened in front of him years ago.

It haunted him… no…

It possessed him.

"Pikapi!" The Pikachu next to him cried and embraced his friend. The boy felt Pikachu hug him and instantly relaxed. The bond between the two seemed completely unbreakable.

"Thank you Pikachu, I don't know if I would be alive if it wasn't for you," the boy replied. The boy was right, he had attempted to end his own life a couple times to escape dealing with the hardships, but everytime, Pikachu would stop him. Ash was always grateful of this even if it could agitate him, but Ash always knew that he can't take life for granted, and Pikachu always reminds him of that.

Suddenly, this boy felt his stomach growl… It had been some time since Pikachu and him had something to eat. In a whisper, Ash said, "Pikachu, let's get something to eat."

"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed as he got on the shoulder of the boy. The boy that was known as Ash Ketchum was revealed when he stepped into the light of the early morning in a busy street of Lumiose. A light tan, raven black hair, auburn eyes, and lightning marks on his cheeks. His clothes though were very wrinkled and the only piece of clothing in decent shape was his red cap.

"Come on Pikachu, we need to find something to eat!" Ash exclaimed as he made himself over to the market. The market was filled with people crowding around food stands in order to find some food for the day. There was baskets filled with cuisine that could make someone's mouth water in sight. There was everything from seafood to Kantonean food. Kantonean food was what appealed to Ash the most though as it reminded him of his home region.

When Ash made it to the market, he found a stand giving out bread. 'hmmmm… that seems like a good place, let's try to not attract too much attention'.

Ash started to walk up to the man in charge of the bread stand who wore a brown T-Shirt along with a pair of gray pants and he had brown hair with pale skin, a common sight of people in Kalos. The man noticed Ash and spoke at him confused as to why someone that looks like they had been ran over by a truck would come to his stand, "Hello there young man! How may I help you?"

"In no way possibly," Ash responded coldly while putting his head down to shadow his eyes. "I came here for some bread…"

The man grabbed a loaf of bread and showed it to Ash. The man then turned to Ash and stated, "This will cost you ten Kaleuros."

Ash sighed and looked over at his partner. Of course they would need to pay, it is the economy that needs it, the only problem was that the raven haired teenager did not have any Kaleuros with him… So like always, Ash used his last only resort to even survive. Ash nodded at Pikachu and looked at the vendor with a smirk.

"Pika...CHUUUU!" Pikachu unleashed a thunderbolt and distracted the man enough time for Ash to grab a loaf of bread.

"Gotta go, bye!" Ash exclaimed as he left running and leaving the man covered in soot from the lightning attack.

Pokemon battle music can start here:

"Thief! GET THAT TEENAGER!" The man yelled watching as Ash started to get out of sight.

Officer Jenny was nearby reading a book on her motorcycle when these words entered her ears. Jenny then turned to the voice and noticed it was a man that had just had his bread taken away. Jenny then took one look at the direction in which the thief ran off to. One look at the thief and Jenny sighed, "Here we go again…" Jenny then turned on her lights and siren and started chasing Ash.

A group of three boys and two girls were in the way of the sidewalk. One boy with black hair grabbed Ash by the collar as he ran past the group. The boy obviously saw what Ash did and knew he had to put some sort of stop to Ash. "Hey! It is not right to steal!" The teenager looked Ash's age and he had black jacket, blue jeans, and a pair of sunglasses on his jet black hair. His skin was pale and he had brown eyes as well. Ash noticed he needed to get out of the situation as fast as possible so he came up with his usual plan for when he got caught:

Ash just turned broke free from him by ordering Pikachu to shock the teenager. "It may be wrong, but I need it to survive!" Ash retaliated and darted out of the group's way.

Ash then looked back and noticed officer Jenny on his sixth. Ash obviously knew he could shake her, he had done it before and he wouldn't give up. Ash ran into the same alley as before and noticed it was a dead end.

"I have you cornered, hands up now!" Jenny called out for probably the first time that day, which had gone on for years. Jenny was very tired of having the same result happen to her though:

Ash smirked and pumped his fist, "Pikachu, use electro ball!"

"pika pika pika pika pika pika CHUPI!" Pikachu cried as he charged and shot an orb of yellow electricity that streaked through the air at high velocity. That electric sphere hit officer Jenny immobilizing her for Ash to make the escape.

"See you later!" Ash yelled as he climbed the walls. The walls were close enough so that ash could jump to and from each other making it to the roof. Doing this for years made Ash an expert. With Pikachu on his side, he was hard to catch.

From bellow, officer Jenny sighed. she knew all about Ash's condition. How he was alone except for the Pikachu without any way of feeding himself other than stealing. She felt pity for the boy, but it was obvious that she had to chase him down. Sadly, whenever she tried to get to him, Ash would escape, he was that good.

Meanwhile at the rooftops, "Here you go Pikachu." Ash had split the bread in half so that they could both share equally. Ash did not know if bread was a good idea to feed to a Pikachu, but as long as Pikachu did not get sick on him, he was fine. Both finished their bread and were thankful that they could eat even if it meant breaking the law. Pikachu always cuddled with Ash, they both were happy to be with each other. This friendship was what kept Ash alive after all.

"Fro…."

Ash heard a new voice enter his ears and looked confused.

"Pika?" Pikachu's ears twitched as he heard the voice as well. It sounded very aquatic and weak as well. Ash got up from where he was to see if he can locate the source with Pikachu following him.

Suddenly, Ash noticed a blue frog-like pokemon lying in the edge of the rooftops , "Look Pikachu."

"Pika?" Pikachu asked as he got nearer to inspect the pokemon.

Ash got closer and noticed it was a Froakie. "Fro," Froakie groaned. Ash noticed Froakie was really hurt. Froakie had cuts and bruises all over his body and there was blood spilling from one of the wounds that crossed Froakie's stomach.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted in urgency.

"Let's get it to the professor's lab!" Ash cried. Ash did know where the lab was, and how Froakie was a starter. Ash was anxious to show himself for the first time to the professor, but he had to, he had no choice if he wanted to save Froakie. Ash had Pikachu on his shoulder and Froakie in his arms as he ran into Lumiose city. He cared for all pokemon as friends, it did not matter that he stole to survive at this point. When in these situations Ash has one priority, saving a life in danger.

 **Entering Lumiose City:**

"Look who decided to show up," a brunette girl with a tanned skin and a hot pink dress with black bow ties said as she looked at Serena with a smile.

"Sorry for the wait Shauna," Serena replied with embarrassment as she caught up to the girl she calls Shauna.

"Serena, you look as beautiful as ever!" two boys yelled. One with black hair that was really big and had a T-Shirt with a Vanillite on it while the other had orange hair and purple eyes. They both had pale skin, but the size difference was huge and the smaller one of the two had a camera around his neck.

"Hey Trevor," Serena replied to the one with orange hair. "And Tierno, you look like you never stop the beat." Serena giggled at the large boy with black hair.

"Well it is good to see the gang's all here," said a boy with a black jacket, he had blue jeans and a pair of sunglasses on his jet black hair. He also had pale skin and brown eyes which were charming enough to attract anyone, and one girl from the group had that sort of attraction towards him.

"Calem, we should go to the research lab now," Shauna said trying to make a move on him since she had been smitten by him ever since they met.

"Sure!" Calem replied and started walking ahead of everyone with a slight smile.

"Hey! Wait for us!" everyone else yelled and tried to catch up.

"Thief! GET THAT TEENAGER!" a voice broke the peace in the city. The gang then noticed a boy with a Pikachu running away from a man and officer Jenny behind him on a motorcycle.

Calem acted fast and grabbed the boy that looked about his age by the collar. "Hey! It is not right to steal!"

The boy just simply said, "Pikachu use thunderbolt!" Calem received a strong thunderbolt that left him on the ground with electricity crackling through him. "It may be wrong, but I need it to survive!" the gang heard the boy shout as he departed with officer Jenny behind him.

"Ugh what is wrong with him?!" Calem yelled in frustration still dazed from the thunderbolt.

"Calem are you ok?" Shauna asked him with a worried tone in her voice.

"Yea, just shocked, I guess," Calem responded and giggled as he got up and scratched his head.

"Wow, look at him go!" Tierno said as he pointed into the alley just in time for everyone to witness the mysterious boy leap from wall to wall to escape officer Jenny.

"That must have taken a lot of skill, that dude is pretty badass, shame he had to steal though," Trevor commented with a shrug of his shoulders.

Serena looked in disbelief, she could have sworn it was him. 'I have to find him' she thought to herself as she looked at the boy disappear on top of the roof tops.

"Come on guys! Here is the lab!" Shauna exclaimed as she lead the group into a mansion near the event that just took place. The mansion was fenced off and had a very nice look to it as it did not look completely like a research lab.

"It looks amazing!" Tierno remarked as the group entered. In the lobby there were some stairs and nice blue walls. The mansion was vast and it seemed like it was also a place to display books about research other than just a research lab.

"Professor Sycamore! Are you here?!" Calem shouted while knocking on some wood to create some noise in the laboratory.

"Coming!" a new voice was heard from a man in a lab coat that had blue hair and a tall body. He also had pale skin with light blue eyes. "Hello and welcome to my lab, I can see that you came to become new trainers! How about we get you guys some pokemon and a pokedex! Sophie if you please!"

A woman by the name of Sophie, who also had a lab coat, but had black hair and a pair of glasses over her eyes, went over to the gang and handed everyone a pokedex updated to know every pokemon from Kanto to Kalos… Excluding Alola.

"Thank you!" everyone responded with a smile as they looked the the new devices that they held in their hands in awe… They all were excited to become trainers.

"Now you get to choose a partner pokemon!" Professor Sycamore commented as five pokemon came from the hallway.

These pokemon included a Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle, Chespin and Fennekin. Sycamore had a puzzled look, 'Where is Froakie?' Sycamore wondered as he put a hand in his chin. Sycamore shook it off and walked to the pokemon that were sitting on the floor starting with the small green dinosaur with a bulb on his back, "This is Bulbasaur!" He then moved to the small fire lizard with a fire in his tail, "This is Charmander." After than he pointed to the blue turtle with a red shell, "That is squirtle," and then Sycamore got near the spiky green pokemon that had a red nose and introduced it, "This is Chespin." Finally, he moved to one of fire fox like pokemon. This one was a little freaked out as Sycamore got close. Sycamore then got the fire fox to relax and called it out, "This one is kind off shy, but she is Fennekin."

The five members of the group had shining eyes as they looked at the starters and their eyes went open in awe. It was time to choose one.

Calem went first **(What a gentleman)** , he got near Chespin, "Hey Chespin, want to be my partner?"

"Ches!" Chespin cried as he embraced Calem.

"I'm next!" Shauna exclaimed. She got next to Bulbasaur. "Hey, want to be friends?"

"Saur!" Bulbasaur responded acting the same way as Chespin towards its new trainer.

"Charmander, I really like you, want to be my partner?" Trevor asked as he approached Charmander.

"Char!" it cried and snuggled with Trevor.

"Squirtle, you look like you can dance want to come along with me?" Tierno asked.

"Squirt!" Squirtle replied and hopped on Tierno.

Fennekin was the last Pokemon left, she was a bit bummed no one had chosen her first. No one could blame her, being chosen last gave her an impression of not being wanted by anyone else. That was soon about to change with a certain revelation of a certain honey blond girl.

Serena looked at Fennekin and got near her. The fox recoiled a little, but then looked at Serena in awe as Serena passed her hand through Fennekin's orange fur, "Fennekin, you are so cute, that is why I was going to choose you anyways, so do you want to be my friend?"

Fennekin was surprised as someone actually was going to choose her. She smiled and hopped on Serena, "Fenn!" she cried as she licked Serena with happiness.

"You are so sweet Fennekin, we will be best friends!" Serena replied with a smile at embracing her newly found partner.

"Well it looks like everyone has a partner!" Sycamore replied and everyone nodded. Sycamore gave everyone their respective pokeballs and asked a question, "So what are you going to do now?"

"Earn badges and win the Kalos league!" Calem responded while pumping his fist which was modeled by the two other boys.

"Same here!" Tierno replied while putting on a dance pose. "My dancing rhythm will destroy anything in my way!"

"Me three!" Trevor responded. "My researching in Pokemon will make it fun for me to train and battle!"

"I am going to go into coordinating or performing, what about you Serena?" Shauna explained with a genuine smile.

"I-I don't know yet," she replied unsure of herself. Then Serena shifted her focus to Fennekin. "But I want to find a dream with Fennekin!"

At that moment the front door opened with a large bang, "I have an injured Froakie can someone help!" a boy asked making everyone turn their heads in the direction of the boy that had a Pikachu on his side. The group noticed he had a slight tan and raven hair. He also had auburn blue eyes and some wrinkled up clothes. The group instantly recognized the teenager in pure shock.

"Froakie NO!" Sycamore yelled as he came to Froakie. "Sophie we need to help Froakie right now!"

"On it!" Sophie replied as the boy we know as Ash stayed there helplessly as Sophie took the water frog to the ER.

"Thank you, we could not have saved it without you," Sycamore said turning to Ash.

"N-no p-problem," Ash responded with shyness and shame. Here he was being praised for something in front of the five people that witnessed him steal. He looked at everyone except when Ash noticed Serena he flinched as a flashback entered his mind: 'Is she the same girl that I? Serena? It can't be'. Ash did not like the fact that someone that had known him before his downfall so he decided that he should not attract attention. Pikachu got up on Ash's shoulder and both Ash and Pikachu felt guilt when they saw Calem and noticed he was furious.

"You! YOU and that Pikachu shocked me! Why would you do that?" Calem exclaimed making everyone, but Serena and Sycamore look at Ash with an angry stare. Serena was debating if it was him while Sycamore was confused at what Calem meant.

"Umm, uh, hey can Pikachu and I meet some other pokemon you have here in the lab?" Ash asked desperately trying to change the subject. Ash had actually been curious as to what pokemon Professor Sycamore would have in the lab, of course, he never actually got the courage to say it, but this was different… He needed a way to get out of the awkward situation with Calem and the others.

"Sure, why don't we all go over there and meet some pokemon!" Sycamore told everyone to which they agreed.

 **A/N: this worked perfectly and you can guess where this is going. If you are thinking of the Garchomp outburst, you are wrong. Something 5 times more dangerous will happen, and things are going to escalate next chapter on that.**

 **Hope you enjoyed, please remember to R &R and I will see you next time!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Alright this chapter will be awesome! (I hope!) Ash is trying to stall the others, specially Calem, but Serena has other plans. When disaster breaks how will things go down?**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 3- Lumiose Chaos

 **Professor Sycamore's lab:**

The gang and Ash were guided down the hallways of the lab. Ash then saw something that caught his eye. "Froakie…" Ash said as he stared through the window of the ER looking at Froakie. Froakie was on a bed that had a glass covering. Inside, Froakie was being monitored by Sophie as the electrocardiogram gave Sophie readings on Froakie's condition. It seemed like if Froakie was attacked by something before Ash caught sight of him at the rooftops of Lumiose City.

"Pikapi," Pikachu said with a hint of sorrow. Ash looked at Pikachu and also frowned. Pikachu also cared for the aquatic frog and it was obvious that they both hoped he would make a full recovery.

"Froakie will be fine, Sophie will take care of him and he will be out in no time!" Sycamore assured to which everyone else was dumbfounded. This was a thief legitimately showing signs of worry to a Pokemon. It did give Serena a hint of sorrow to see Ash in such a terrible condition, but it was as if she knew Ash had not changed deep inside.

The group then walked out of the lab and into a large glass dome which had an ecosystem like feel to it as there was grass, trees, streams, and even berry shrubs. The group then saw a lot of Pokemon playing and wandering around. "Wow look at all the Pokemon!" Trevor shouted as he looked around with sparkling eyes. He then grabbed his camera and began to photograph a lot of the Pokemon that were wandering around.

"Amazing I have never seen that one before!" Tierno pointed out as Shauna and Calem went and petted a group of Helioptile that were with their mother Heliolisk. As they petted the normal/electric Pokemon, they noticed how friendly the Pokemon were to them.

"Wow… Dragonite, Tyranitar, Metagross, Garchomp, and Hydreigon all in one lab," Ash started in wonder as he looked at some of the Pokemon united in one group. Ash obviously knew them from past memories as he turned to Pikachu and said, "Pikachu look, pseudo-legendary Pokemon."

"That is right, these Pokemon are very strong and their stats can rival those of a legendary Pokemon!" Sycamore responded from behind Ash. Ash then turned slightly startled by the sudden voice to the Professor as he kept explaining with hand motions. "Amazingly, my research has lead me to discover that Tyranitar, Metagross, and Garchomp can achieve something beyond evolution. They can mega evolve!"

"Wow, that must be amazing, I wish I could know how to use it," Ash replied in awe as he heard the term "mega evolution". It seemed like a strong combination of power for Ash's team and if Ash could harness that power… Thing is, Ash never had really thought about even adopting that power before, much less actually traveling since he just stayed in Lumiose and attempted to thrive with his wild Pikachu.

"It takes a strong bond and a stone," Sycamore replied simply. This made Ash look into his pocket and take out a case. The word "stone" had reminded him of a certain stone he treasures.

"Professor, what is this?" Ash asked showing Sycamore the stone he had in his pocket. He wondered what it was, so he thought that the professor would be a great person to ask. The stone glistened in front of the professor showing off the DNA symbol.

Sycamore grew wide-eyed, "T-That's a k-key stone… if you find a Pokemon you have a strong bond with you could mega evolve, if it is holding the right stone of course." Sycamore then examined the stone before giving it back making sure it was, in fact, a keystone, and sure enough, it was.

"Awesome…" Ash stared at the stone in wonder. Little did they know some people have been overhearing their conversation.

 **Outside the dome:**

"Hey, we can use this to control those pseudo-legendaries and cause havoc!" someone said "It would be a great way to… how can I say it, slack off work and not have to deal with Xerocic's orders." That person had an orange suit and a pair of red goggles that covered his eyes. His shirt also had a fire like symbol to it.

"I have the special collars," another person replied with a smirk while peeking inside with a special pair of goggles that could see through walls. This person was a girl, but the attire was definitely similar to the one that the other guy had.

 **Back inside the dome:**

Back in the lab, Serena was glancing at Ash and Sycamore, she wanted to go up to Ash and ask if he remembered her, but she knew that something was not right, why would he be a thief and here in Kalos? She shook her head in disbelief, it probably was not him, but she could try and ask for Ash's name.

As soon as Sycamore left to talk with Trevor, who was photographing some Azumarill and Marill, Ash was alone with his Pikachu. Serena noticed this and on their own, her legs began to drag her to him. As soon as she was in close proximity to Ash, Serena spoke up, "ummmmm, h-hey."

"O-oh uhh hi," Ash replied startled as he turned around to the honey blonde, not because he was surprised, but because it was Serena that was talking to him.

"I never got a name, I just wanted to introduce myself, my name is Serena, what's yours?" Serena asked with a smile trying to make herself look welcoming because she knew that the person she was talking to was a very private individual.

"My name? Ummmmmm… My name is…" Ash started trying to not say his own name. It seemed awkward for Serena so she took it a step further and asked Ash a question he flinched at.

"Have you heard of someone called Ash Ketchum before?" Serena asked out of the blue. Of course, Ash had heard that name before, but not formally in a while. It was something that was foreign to him that someone was talking to him again normally.

"..." Ash was standing there speechless when suddenly…

 **"BOOOOOOOM!"** a large explosion was heard rattling the entire lab and grabbing everyone's attention. Smoke came from the side of the dome as two people were revealed standing in the hole with poses. The two figures then grabbed a gun like machine and aimed for the pseudo-legendary Pokemon that were in the lab by themselves. When the figures pulled the triggers, then red collars shot out and clasped the necks of the pseudo-legendary Pokemon.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted as he ran with Ash to the place where the explosion sounded like it came from. The others followed as they saw the pseudo-legendary Pokemon have blood red glowing eyes. This made everyone flinch as the pseudo-legendaries did not look as friends as before. Garchomp put his hand out in a battle stance while Dragonite clenched his fists.

"Hey! Who are you people?!" Sycamore shouted at the orange dressed men. Now more visible to the group, the orange-dressed people clicked on a button on the remote that made it look like the pseudo-legendary Pokemon wanted to kill.

"Hahaha, team flare just wanted to have a little fun," one grunt replied, it was the girl and she was smirking and putting a hand on her hips.

"Ta ta!" the other exclaimed as they both left after hitting a button causing the pseudo-legendary Pokemon to clench their heads with their hands and give out a terrible cry of pain. With that, the Garchomp shot a hyper beam in the direction of the trainers inside of the dome. The trainers ducked as the dark electric beam passed over them and then caused a large explosion from behind completely destroying part of the ecosystem. Then, the mind controlled pokemon flew out of the existing hole and into the city.

Everyone stared in disbelief as the five legendary Pokemon started battling and spread out all over the city while using their moves to destroy it.

"Pikachu let's go after them!" Ash exclaimed as he ran out the door only to be stopped by a small blue aquatic frog.

"Froa!" Froakie exclaimed as he looked at Ash with determined eyes and nodded. Ash already knew what Froakie needed.

"Froakie, want to help?" Ash asked while pumping his fist at the water type.

"Kie!"

"Then let's go!" Ash replied as he ran through the giant hole, Pikachu and Froakie went after him easily able to keep the pace.

"Be careful!" Sycamore told Ash as Ash bolted out. Ash may not have heard it, but at least Sycamore wanted Ash to know it was dangerous outside.

"I am going to help as well, let's go Chespin!" Calem exclaimed as he released Chespin and ran out. The others were left in disbelief at how someone who looked like he hated Ash was running out to help him.

"Squirtle come on out!"

"Bulbasaur you too!"

"Charmander we have to help!"

The pokeballs opened and revealed the Pokemon. After the Pokemon got notified of the situation, they followed their trainers out into the chaos.

The others left leaving Serena terrified, but she needed to be there for her friends. "Fennekin, let's work together," she stated as she revealed Fennekin and ran out to everyone else. "We won't give up until the end!"

"You always motivate us with those words Serena," Shauna, Calem, Trevor and Tierno agreed, Ash did not hear it since he was obviously too far ahead of the group.

Back at the city people were fleeing the scene as debris flew from the mind-controlled Pokemon causing havoc. Ash was running towards the Pokemon that were all battling near Prism tower. Calem was not far behind him and the others were trying to catch up.

"Glad to see the guy that tried to stop me helping me do something crazy," Ash said to Calem with a sarcastic smile.

"Whatever man," Calem responded with a smirk. Something about Ash's determination made him more confident and daring.

 **Battle music begin!**

"I will take on the Tyranitar, you take on the Garchomp!" Ash declared as Ash and Calem split ways. When the others saw this they split evenly as well. Shauna and Trevor went with Calem and Serena and Tierno went with Ash.

On Calem's side of the battle, Shauna and Trevor were using their starters to attempt to contain the Garchomp.

"You guys have to relax, if you keep attacking, you will cause more damage to the city!" Calem instructed. "We just need to make sure we can safely take out its collar."

Shauna decided to take the initiative, so as she put her hands out, she said, "Bulbasaur use vine whip to restrict its movements!"

"Saur!" Bulbasaur cried as it used the vines to grab Garchomp. Garchomp tried to escape, but the vines prevented the movement for enough time for Calem to do his part.

"Chespin you too!" Calem called out while putting his fist out.

"Chess pin!" Chespin shouted as he stretched out his vines towards the Garchomp.

While both grass typed had Garchomp secured, Trevor tried to remove the collar, "Charmander use scratch to remove the collar!"

Charmander charged the Garchomp with a white glowing claw, but Garchomp fired a hyperbeam right at Charmander, who barely avoided it causing a large explosion behind Charmander that was in such close proximity to the trainers that they had to shelter their heads in order to prevent getting hit by falling debris. Unfortunately, this explosion caused Chespin and Bulbasaur to become startled and loosen the grip or the land shark Pokemon and Garchomp jumped on top of the rooftops and fired another Draco meteor into the sky. The ball of fire streaked across the sky and exploded into many falling meteors.

"Take cover!" Shauna exclaimed and the three trainers protected themselves and their Pokemon by putting their hands over their heads to prevent taking too much damage from the falling rocks that were ignited in fire. "Ugh, this is going to be harder than I thought!"

 **With Ash:**

On Ash's side, Ash saw Tyranitar in the distance and began to sprint with more intensity, "I see it!"

"How will we get it down?" Tierno asked suddenly as he watched the rock and dark type's position. He was right, the Tyranitar was on top of a building looking down on the city.

"grrr… Pikachu use thunderbolt!" Ash exclaimed while putting his hand out.

"Pika...CHUUU!" Pikachu shouted enveloped in electricity and this shooting an electrical beam at the rock pseudo legendary.

"Squirtle help with water gun!" Squirtle looked at the rock type and aimed with his mouth. After that, the small turtle expelled a jet of water from his mouth towards the pseudo-legendary Pokemon.

"Fennekin push it with ember!" Serena shouted while putting her hand out. Fennekin made a battle cry and shot a burst of fire from her mouth towards the pseudo-legendary Pokemon.

The attacks collided with a large explosion and Ash questioned if that actually did the trick and finished off the giant monster-like Pokemon. But Ash was wrong as he saw Tyranitar get up extremely easily and smirk down at the group… But Tyranitar suddenly started to have lightning sparks coming from it making Ash's eyes widen. Suddenly Tyranitar dropped to one knee with the lightning marks and Ash pumped his fist.

"It's paralyzed! That's it!" Ash shouted. "Pikachu break the collar with iron tail!" Pikachu's tail glowed white, but just when it was going to hit, a large blue shooting projectile came from the side of Tyranitar and slammed into him pushing Tyranitar down several streets in a large explosion. This left Pikachu and the others dazed as they looked left to see Tyranitar getting up to fire off a hyper beam at the Pokemon that had just attacked him: The Metagross that had used meteor mash.

"Take cover!" Serena exclaimed as she saw a random Draco meteor from Dragonite above them shatter into a lot of meteors. The meteors fell and Ash, covered Pikachu and Froakie as Serena protected Fennekin and Tierno put himself above Squirtle as the attacks came. Dragonite was in a fierce battle with Hydreigon and the orange dragon definitely was attempting to cause large amounts of damage to the three-headed dark type.

"That's it! We need to get together with the others!" Ash exclaimed a change of plans as the others nodded and went the direction Calem, Shauna and Trevor went earlier hoping that the situation would be easier.

When they met up they found out that they were having trouble with Garchomp. Garchomp was charging up a hyperbeam that could have been devastating until Ash came along.

"Quick, Froakie use your frubbles to close Garchomp's mouth!" Ash exclaimed while putting his fist out.

"Fro!" Froakie replied as he put his webbed hand in his cervical area and launched his frubbles that stuck to Garchomp when it was about to fire the draconic beam making the Garchomp hit itself in an explosion that happened in the ground dragon's mouth. Garchomp fell back to the ground completely dazed after the explosion and the others saw the opportunity.

"Now Pikachu use iron tail!" Ash exclaimed with a confident tone and raising his hand.

"Pika chuuuuu!" Pikachu replied as he made his tail stiffen up and glow white. With it he ran a couple strides and destroyed the collar in a very clean cut across the width of the neck device,

"Good to see you came here!" Calem shouted exhausted while sinking to his legs to pant. Garchomp fell over exhausted and completely dazed. In a stretcher, Nurse Joy came with Officer Jenny and they both worked together to put Garchomp in an ambulance and take the land shark to the nearest Pokemon center, but the pandemonium was still going on.

"Well, we still have four more and they are battling over there!" Serena pointed out in time to see two Draco meteors light up the sky near prism tower and disappear from the field of view from our heroes through the buildings. Not only that it, the ground started to shake randomly which startled the six trainers.

"Guys, the plan is this, since our Pokemon are not as strong as these pseudos then we need to combine our power and attack one by one, then Pikachu will use iron tail and break the collar, we will take them on one by one and our main goal is to hit them with status conditions!" Ash explained as everyone listened intently.

"Sounds like a plan, who do we go after next?" Trevor asked with a serious tone as he checked on his Charmander for any bruises or scratches.

"Tyranitar, we paralyzed it," Tierno asserted quickly.

"What are we waiting for, let's move!" Calem shouted and the gang started to run towards the direction that Ash's group had come from originally. As they neared the situation, they saw a large blue Pokemon using a barrage of pink beams to interact with the large dinosaur like Pokemon's dark lightning barrage of energy. The attacks met in the middle and struggled, but then both attacks gave out and an explosion followed. It was Tyranitar and Metagross both locked in an intense battle.

 **Back at Serena's house:**

Grace heard a knock on the door. She was obviously not expecting any visitors at this time.

Grace opened the door to see her friend Laura standing there. Laura looked very alarmed as she was shaking from something and it was clearly 70 degree outside which was illogical.

"Laura good to see you, please come in," Grace said politely as she let her friend walk in. She had black hair and green eyes. Laura also had some nice pink. As soon as Laura walked in, her walk broke into a spring into the living room and slightly confused, Grace heard Laura shouting inside her house.

"Thank you," Laura replied with a slight amount of urgency in her voice and ran towards the living room. "Grace turn on the TV QUICK!"

"Ok…" Grave started as she turned on the television while using the remote. "OH MY GOSH! What is going on!?" Grace nearly dropped the coffee on her coffee table in front of the television set. The scene was basically smoke arising from the Paris-based city and a lot of clear damage to the city itself.

"Four strong Pokemon are rampaging Lumiose City, there was five, but one was controlled. Our children are in there, though!" Laura explained with worry through her body language. Laura's hands were shaking with extreme intensity for worry at the trainers, or rather, their children.

"What do you mean?... Serena and Calem are fighting the Pokemon!?" Grace asked. Grace looked at the TV in time to see Serena command her Fennekin to use ember on a Tyranitar that was attempting to launch a barrage of blue stones at a Metagross. At that moment, Grace nearly fainted knowing that Serena was actually battling in the pandemonium.

 **Back in Lumiose:**

"Great, now Pikachu use iron tail before Tyranitar comes back!" Ash exclaimed while pointing at Tyranitar who was charging up a hyper beam. Pikachu made his tail glow white and get hard as he jumped into action towards the Pokemon that was known to destroy mountains. This time Pikachu successfully managed to break the collar with one swipe. Tyranitar then slumped over and fell on his back. Seeing the dinosaur down, Metagross charged up a meteor mash at the heroes who turned their attention to the steel and psychic type.

"Fennekin use ember!" Serena ordered seeing the large attacking Pokemon turn blue with his its fists.

"You too Charmander!"

Both fire attacks collided and then Metagross. Metagross recoiled a little before putting his hands together once more and charging the blue aura again. This time, though, Metagross grew on fire meaning that it was burned and then Metagross slumped to the ground in pain. "Pikachu now! Use iron tail!"

"Pika… chu!" Pikachu shouted and hit the collar with his white tail and snapped the collar that went around the head of the Metagross. Metagross slumped and fell exhausted next to Tyranitar completely unconscious.

"Take them to the Pokemon center!" A new voice broke through. It was Officer Jenny and Nurse Joy who had come to look at the recent damage. After seeing the two monsters on the ground, Nurse Joy got to work as Officer Jenny turned to our heroes. "Thanks for the help, we have to make sure they get helped!"The others nodded towards the two women who were taking care of the Pokemon and then they turned towards Prism Tower.

"Only two more to go!" Shauna exclaimed with worry. Hydreigon and Dragonite were still battling close to the top of Prism Tower.

"We have to get up there," Ash stated while turning to his Pokemon and nodding. Ash then began to run towards the tower with his Pokemon, but Professor Sycamore came behind the gang and grabbed Ash to stop him from running to Prism Tower.

"It's too dangerous!" Sycamore shouted with extreme alarm and a determined look to keep Ash safe.

"Hydreigon and Dragonite are the ones in danger, I have to go up there!" Ash retaliated while he shook his head. The others looked at Ash with disbelief, he was risking his life for another. 'We saw him steal and now he is saving a life?' everyone else thought. The others definitely had not expected this much change in Ash's character in such a short amount of time.

Ash then let Sycamore's grip soften and took a break for it. Pikachu and Froakie followed with determined faces as they entered the tower from the front. Ash then ran up the stairs and got to a trapdoor that leads to the top. When he opened the door he saw a hyper beam pass right in front of him which made him retaliate and dodge at the last second.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu screamed.

"Fro!" Froakie also shouted in worry for the raven haired teenager's safety.

"I'm fine guys, now let's save these Pokemon!" Ash replied as he got his composure back together after the surprise and pushed himself up from the trap door to take on the two dragons head on with the Pokemon on his side.

 **Serena's house:**

"It appears there is a boy on top of Prism Tower!" a reported exclaimed completely in shock. "Not only that a girl, seems to have gone up after him as well!"

"That boy, what is he doing?" Laura asked completely confused wondering if the boy with raven hair that appeared with two Pokemon at his side was the trainer of the Pokemon.

"I have no cl-... wait is that Serena behind him?" Grace asked in shock as she saw a honey blonde girl show up from the trap door with a Fennekin trying to catch up with the raven-haired boy.

 **Back at Prism Tower:**

Ash looked out and saw Hydreigon immobilized from the same hyper beam that nearly hit Ash. Ash then put his arm out, "Pikachu use iron tail!"

Pikachu jumped off the edge and charged his iron tail and hitting Hydreigon's collar and snapping it off. Pikachu was still in freefall so Ash had to act quick, "Froakie use your frubbles to catch Pikachu!"

"Frooooo kie!" Froakie exclaimed as he launched the frubbles and caught Pikachu, only to also almost go out of the edge, but Ash caught Froakie. To Ash's surprise, another pair of hands grabbed him from behind and helped get Pikachu and Froakie to safety. Hydreigon started slowly falling down towards the earth at a safe speed that slumped down to the Officer Jennys that were at the bottom of the tower completely in awe at what Ash was doing.

"Serena! Why are you up here?!" Ash exclaimed in complete worry as he saw Serena behind him with Fennekin.

"To help, look out!" Serena shouted as she tackled Ash to get out of the way of a fire blast that hit the ground ahead of them. Serena then put on some determined blue eyes and examined the orange dragon "We have to stop that Dragonite!"

Serena and Ash got up from the ground and focused on Dragonite until, "Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted as the ground had given way and he was in free fall.

"Pikachu!" Ash exclaimed as both Ash and Froakie dove after Pikachu.

Serena out a huge gasp, she looked away, she could not see Ash die like this. She could not bare see him die a terrible death.

Down in the ground everyone gasped in shock as they saw Pikachu fall and Ash and Froakie diving after him.

 **Serena's house:**

Both Laura and Grace had gasped at watching Ash dive.

 **Lumiose City:**

What happened next left all of Kalos holding its breath.

Ash and Froakie caught Pikachu and Ash put both Pokemon on his arms. "Froakie quick use your frubbles to launch ourselves up!"

Froakie launched his frubbles that latched onto the side of Prism Tower and then the tension came and made the trio completely arc back up towards the top of the tower. Using the amount of kinetic energy they have received, Ash and Pikachu were heading towards the Dragonite at immense speed.

"Pikachu we have one shot! Iron tail!" Ash exclaimed as Pikachu used his white glowing tail to slam into the collar that was causing damage to Dragonite. "Froakie keep using your frubbles to slow us down as we fall!" The three were still in the air on live television and to all of the people watching. Froakie came through though and somehow used the buildings to bring Ash and Pikachu down safely Spider-Man style.

 **Ash POV:**

Froakie slowed our descent, but I still felt a great amount of G force affecting us as we were about to hit the ground. I put both Froakie and Pikachu in my arms and prepared for the worse as I front flipped.

I then felt a huge amount of force push back at me as I collided with the ground and rolled. I could feel the rolling and wanted to stop but could not. If I did one bad move I could risk the lives of both the Pokemon I hold in my arms and I will never do that. I then felt myself stop and I looked up completely sore. I turn towards the top of the tower and see Serena holding her chest with a relieved look on her face with Fennekin.I then lower my gaze and see Dragonite fall just in time to be rushed by the Nurse Joys and Officer Jennys that have been guarding the bottom of the tower.

I see some of the people that were helping and began to stand up, but my vision then got blurry as I lost my balance.

I fell to the ground and my entire vision went black as I lost all sensation throughout my body.

 **Normal POV:**

"PIKAPI!" Pikachu shouted in worry as he tried to wake up Ash.

"FROAKIE KIE!" Froakie also exclaimed in urgency seeing Ash in this condition and doing the same thing as Pikachu.

"Quick! Get him to my lab!" Sycamore shouted as everyone went for help. Tierno, Trevor, and Calem got to work instantly with worried looks on their faces and they carried Ash off the ground.

"Pikapi…" Pikachu said in a depressing mood. Pikachu and Froakie followed everyone carrying an unconscious Ash back to the lab.

Serena was getting down from the Tower, but her thoughts mainly pointed in this direction: 'He has to be him!'

 **A/N: Intense huh? Who would have thought of five instead of just Garchomp and this time Ash actually used his own capabilities in hand to save himself instead of having a Blaziken save him. You know? I never thought that Frubbles would be that useful!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Also, I am going to respond to a couple reviews:**

 **Hunter:** Oh god bro, you should have said "FIRST!"

 **St Elmo's Fire:**

Gotcha on changing the fic to the anime category. Also, I used grammarly for this chapter, so tell me if the grammar is better xD!

 **Guest 1:**

Armour for the win right?! ;)

 **Guest 2:**

I already have Ash's team planned out as I have already written up to Chapter 24 at the time that I am writing this. Ash will not have an Alolan Pokemon for now, but he does have a strong team of six that reflects some other regions (Kanto, Hoenn and mostly Kalos though). As for giving Ash Type: Null, maybe we could fit that into Ash later on. Also, Ash's team will be mostly his ultimate team that does not include Alola in my opinion.

As for others having Alolan Pokemon, Serena will be a big one and we will figure that one out in the near future!

Also, thanks for enjoying the fic so far, I may take some of your considerations into account in the future!

 **Quickly, if you are a guest and review, I will try and comment by calling you by the number of the order in which you reviewed, so next time I get a guest, I will call them "Guest 1" again. It is just impossible to track everyone down.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: ok last time we left off there was chaos in Lumiose, not only that but I made Ash be someone that did not completely rely on luck when it came to times of danger. Also, if you are thinking that these will be traveling companions, I want to state now (and please don't hate me) that Ash will start out traveling alone, after a while he may get another companion other than Pikachu, but Ash will sustain himself by actually buying food from money he gets when he battles. You will see the gang pop up here in there with Ash, some alone or all together, but there will be Serena at times witnessing what Ash can do.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 4- Comatose Memories and a New Path

 **At Professor's Lab:**

"Serena, Calem, Trevor, Tierno, and Shauna, while I get some medications to help the boy recover, I would appreciate it if you guys would take care of him," Sycamore asked the favor to which everyone agreed.

The gang walked into the room and noticed Ash was sleeping in a bed with an electrocardiogram monitoring his vital signs. Pikachu and Froakie were there watching over Ash. The pokemon were very worried for their friend.

"Does anyone even know his name?" Tierno asked in concern. It was true, out of everyone that knew the name of the teenager, only Serena could guess the name was 'Ash' and she was not completely sure about it either. What made Serena almost completely sure that she recognized the raven-haired teenager as her friend from childhood is that he called her out with her name during the Lumiose incident at the top of Prism Tower.

"I don't know…" Calem replied staring over Ash completely blank on any idea.

In Ash's dreams:

"Mom, do you see those men in orange suits?" Ash asked to his mother next to him. They were now in a park near Pallet Town. The scenery was a nice green patch of grass with some pokemon scurrying out the way of people in orange suits heading towards Ash and his mother.

"Ash… go home now," Ash's mom replied in urgency. Ash nodded and obliged as he left only to turn to see his mother screaming and being attacked by giant pokemon, they had purple bodies and a horn: Nidoking.

"Dad you have to help mom!... Dad?" Ash replied watching as his Dad walked over to his mom. His Dad sent out a black pokemon that had silver and a red eyes. That pokemon made a black orb that put Ash's mom to sleep really quickly.

"no... NOOOOO!" Ash shouted while grabbing his head in complete pain. 'It's not happening, not AGAIN! GET ME OUT OF THIS DREAM!'

 **Back at the lab:**

Ash started to move violently, everyone grew concerned. He almost hit Pikachu who was standing next to Ash, but Pikachu was quick enough to dodge the fist that was coming his way. It was not something that anyone expected as Ash's eyes would stay closed.

"I will kill you for what you did to her!" Ash shouted as he started to get up from his bed completely unaware of his real surroundings. The sleep paralysis was not affecting Ash and his nightmare was completely taking over Ash's actions.

Everyone stared in shock except Pikachu who was very worried for his friend. Pikachu kept shouting for Ash to calm down, but would not succeed. The other people in the room flinched and began to tense their muscles at the sign that they would have to react. Pikachu knew he had to act fast so he turned to Froakie and instructed the frog.

"Pikapi pi pikachu!"

"FRO!" Froakie understood Pikachu and threw frubbles to restrain Ash to the bed.

"Good thinking Froakie!" Shauna asserted as everyone grew worried watching as Ash was completely tied up to the bed thanks to Froakie's sticky substance.

"Why did you kill her?! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO SAVE HER NOT JOIN THEM!" Ash replied still asleep while he shook his head in disbelief. The entire statement was completely implied venomously which caused everyone in the room to feel a chill down their spine at the menacing tone.

"I think he is having a Nightmare…!" Calem shouted in panic as he saw Ash struggle to get out of the restraints.

"What do we do?" Tierno and Trevor panicked. Serena was standing there is shock… 'Is this something that haunts his past?' Serena thought while watching Ash. Something was not right about the person she knew from the past, the same cheery boy.

"You betrayed her, you betrayed me I will ki-" Ash started but then made a sudden jerk with his body as in he was hit in the chest with something. Then Ash relaxed and fell back unconscious.

The room stood silent for an entire moment.

"What… just… happened?" Trevor asked in shock and disbelief.

"Pikapi…" Pikachu said as he lowered his head.

Ash then said something that caught Serena's attention, Ash was still asleep though, but it was like a happy memory had taken over and replaced the same dangerous and menacing memory that was haunting him minutes prior.

"Poliwag?" Ash asked completely relaxed… It was as if the painful experience did not exist in the mentality of this dream, yet it was amazing how it was still not affected by sleep paralysis. "Poliwag where are you? I want to see you before I go back to the campsite."

Serena tensed up. She knew what was coming from the dream so she gulped as she got some confidence to surge through her blood vessels. She then stepped up next to Ash's bed and pulled out her a handkerchief. It was simple, it was blue and white and it had a pokeball in the center.

"Serena? What's wrong?" Shauna asked completely freaked out that Serena was going next to the person that was just shouting threats in the room.

"Shauna… I am going to have a conversation with him even though he won't notice…" Serena replied. Everyone gave confused looks as Ash kept calling out Poliwag for now apparent reason.

Calem spoke up first with a hand out in a 'what is going on anymore' position, "Serena what are-"

Calem was interrupted by Ash again. Serena had the handkerchief in hand and squeezed it a lot harder when she heard the next part, "Poliwag? Where did you go? Oh… Hey there! are you ok? I'm Ash, what's wrong?"

Serena sighed and responded with a slight giggle as the name of him was revealed to her completely in one statement. The person in front of her was in fact the very same person that had helped her at summer camp. Serena then spoke up and responded with her side of the story, "I… I hurt my leg."

Everyone else looked at Serena with disbelief. Pikachu and Froakie stared in awe. Pikachu had recalled Ash talking like this before when he slept, but that someone would seem to know what was going on was confusing. Not only that, Pikachu noticed that someone was filling in the other half of the dialogue making it more complete.

"I see, what's your name though?" Ash asked with a nice giggle. It was as if Ash had become the nicest person in the entire world being a complete gentleman to a girl.

"Serena is my name," Serena replied in a very angelic and calm voice. Everyone seemed to go wide eyed now as it seemed like Serena had met the teenager before… Which is in fact true.

"See this? This is a good luck charm, if I wrap it around your leg and say the magic words everything will be better!" Ash exclaimed while still struggling in the frubbles. It did not affect Ash's attitude though as he tried to make it work.

Serena looked at the handkerchief in her hands and back at Ash still sleep talking in bed and said with a little bit of doubt, of course it was faked, but she tried to make the memory flourish in her mind, "Ash are you sure this will work?"

"Yea, see? Now, pain pain go away RIGHT AWAY!" Ash exclaimed making everyone in the room completely puzzled.

Serena giggled with a sigh and then with a smile replied, "Ash, it still hurts…"

"Don't give up until the end, come on!" Ash replied. Everyone looked at Serena in shock, 'Those are the words that Serena always tells us in hard situations' everyone else thought.

"Thank you for helping me Ash," Serena replied with a smile and from looking down at Ash, she had a slight blush in her face. She felt like using her long hair to cover up the blush, but she decided to let the heat tint her cheeks with a little bit of pink.

"Anything for you Serena!" Ash replied causing everyone's jaws to hit the floor. Ash then stopped talking for good…

The person said Serena's name...

Serena sighed and stepped back as she regained composure. "Serena, what was that all about?" Trevor asked.

"It was when I met him," Serena said motioning to Ash. "I hurt my leg in a forest during Professor Oak's summer camp in Pallet Town and he helped me… What you just heard was the dialogue we shared when we met, he must have had the dream of what happened."

"So, those encouraging words of 'never give up until the end', came from him?" Calem asked looking at Ash in disbelief. Serena nodded her head slowly. Calem could not believe how much this boy had somehow shapes Serena's life.

Suddenly, Ash woke up with his eyes shooting open and Ash struggling to deal with the frubbles that were attached to his arms and legs. As soon as Ash saw that he was safe he looked around and noticed the five people that were talking with him and asked, "Hey guys, how long was I out?"

"PIKAPI!"

"FROA KIE KIE!"

"Pikachu, Froakie hey guys!" Ash replied as the two pokemon embraced him. "I'm sorry if I worried you guys." Ash then turned to the five others in the room, "Thank you for taking care of me, I have not ever had anyone to do that to me in a while."

"It's fine, we have not properly introduced ourselves yet, i'm Shauna!" Shauna exclaimed with a wink.

"I'm Calem!" Calem replied while putting on a nice battle pose.

"I'm Tierno!" Tierno replied while rolling in the ground and performing a little bit of a break dancing move.

"And I'm Trevor!" Trevor finally said as he pulled out his camera and showed it off.

Ash then looked at Serena, Ash noticed the handkerchief and tensed up. Ash knew that Serena knew who he was and it would be hard to hide. He managed to steal in front of her, but could he lie in front of her?

"So, what is your name?" Calem asked Ash completely making the latter lose the coloring that kept his face together.

"My name?... ummm… I… my name is..." Ash started he wanted to lie about his name, he did not want to be recognised.

"It's ok Ash," Serena responded causing Ash to tense up even more, she called out his name. "I already know your name," Serena said with a little bit of sarcasm and a small smile. "You had a dream of the day we met didn't you?"

Ash then put his head down, "Yea… I did, if I acted up while I was sleeping I apologize, I… I tried to hide the fact that you knew who I was Serena, I could not bring myself to do that after you saw who I am today."

"So, you two do know each other?" Trevor asked completely breaking the interaction between the two childhood friends.

"Yes, I helped her out in a forest, we were childhood friends until she left to Kalos shortly after we met. Then we never saw each other again. I somehow ended up here and lived here for the last couple of years, but always stayed hidden in the shadows of Lumiose City," Ash replied solemnly, it was hard for him to admit it to the others.

Fortunately for Ash, Professor Sycamore came back at that point and went into the room, "You are awake! Hey, guys, you should probably go upstairs and get some rest." Everyone nodded and left, even Pikachu and Froakie to leave Ash with Sycamore alone. "So… I hear that Ash is your name."

"Yea, what about it?" Ash asked with a neutral tone and looking down at the bed trying his best to avoid looking at Professor Sycamore.

"I talked with officer Jenny, it seems you have done some bad things in the past, can you tell me why?" Sycamore asked.

Ash sighed and sat up in bed. He found out that he should actually talk to someone about his past, he knew he needed help. For the first time Ash revealed his condition: "For the last couple of years, I have not had a home. I had lost my mother and was betrayed by my father..." Ash started to tear up. "I have nothing except this case with a picture of my mother and a keystone. Not only that, but I steal to survive. Pikachu is my only friend and he saved me from suicide so many times… my life is a mess and that is why I am forced to do these things," Ash let everything off his chest making him feel better, but at the same time stunning Sycamore.

"I… I'm sorry you had to go through that," Sycamore responded looking down feeling pity for the boy. He then looked up and spoke up, "Here is the deal… I want to turn this all around."

"Huh?" Ash replied with confusion as he looked at the professor.

"Would you like to become a trainer? One that makes friends and helps others?" Sycamore asked. "If it interests you, challenging the eight gyms and getting badges to compete in the league is an amazing way to turn your situation around. Also, you won't have to steal food if you battle well from the prize money."

"I… I can put this all behind me and start over?" Ash asked while looking back down at the bed with shame and agony.

"Ash, if I can help you change for the better, I will support you," Sycamore replied with a reassuring smile.

"Thank you… I want to give it a try," Ash said as he turned around to look at the Professor. Ash then smiled and for once in a long time, Ash felt a large amount of confidence rip right through his bones and muscles.

"So, do you want to choose a partner pokemon?" Sycamore asked knowing where this was going.

"No thanks, I already have one," Ash explained almost instantly. "Pikachu is my partner."

"But you need to have it in a pokeball to be yours," Sycamore raised an eyebrow.

"I will give it a pokeball tomorrow, but I have to explain this journey to him," Ash explained with a small smile. He would be hoping that Pikachu would become his best friend and keep going onto being his first pokemon.

"Makes sense, get some rest, I can't wait to see you in the morning," Sycamore responded as he left the room.

"Pokemon trainer? When I was little I wanted to be a pokemon master… can I achieve this?" Ash asked himself as he turned over to his side and shut his eyes. This time sleep paralysis did help him stay safe during his dreams, which thankfully were not as violent as the one he previously had.

 **The next day:**

Ash woke up and left his room, the machines monitoring him had been removed after he woke up. He felt a little sore from the day before, but none the less got up and left the room. Just then Professor Sycamore came into the foyer.

"Ash, it is early, what are you doing up? No one will get up for another couple of hours," Sycamore replied while sipping on a cup of coffee.

"Oh, I just needed to get some fresh air," Ash replied while looking back at the Professor with a small smile.

"In that case, here," Sycamore replied giving Ash some Keuros (Kalos currency).

"Money? Why?" Ash asked in shock.

"Before you go on your journey, you should get some stuff to be prepared, food, new clothes and a backpack of course. Let's not forget about camping supplies. Not to mention that you can buy potions for your Pikachu and other Pokemon too," Sycamore replied with a smile that left Ash barely able to talk.

"T-thank you professor…"

"Don't mention it, now why don't you go and buy yourself some things, when you come back I will have some stuff ready for you," Sycamore replied.

"Ok, I will be right back then," Ash said as he went towards the door. Ash then opened the door and looked back at the Professor who gave him a reassuring motion to keep going. Ash smile and walked out of the door.

 **Two hours later with Serena and Shauna in Sycamore's lab in a sleeping room:**

"Serena, are you ok?" Shauna asked her honey blonde. "You have been zoned out a lot since yesterday."

"Yea I am fine," Serena replied from her bunk. "I just want to see the happy and energetic Ash again."

"Well, maybe you will. He is quite go-" Shauna started with a smirk, but it was short lived as Serena interrupted..

"Shauna… Just because he is the guy does not mean I want to be teased about it right now," Serena interrupted slightly annoyed knowing that Shauna was going to call Ash probably something along the lines of 'good looking'.

"Wait… but how can you like him that way? I mean I was going to try and make you, but how could you crush on him if he did bad things in front of you?" Shauna asked completely in disbelief finding out that Serena actually had something for the boy.

"Because he is still the same loving and caring person that I know, he taught me so much to get through something for the short time we were together… After I left to Kalos, my mom kept in touch with Pallet Town and something had happened to Ash's family. When he acted up yesterday he had a bad memory and it haunts him, but I want to make sure that the real Ash can come back!" Serena declared.

"Maybe the guys are up, we should get up too," Shauna said leaving the topic as is because she did not want to annoy Serena any more than she seemed.

The girls walked out of the room and to their surprise Pikachu appeared in front of Serena.

"Pikachu, hey, where is everyone?" Serena asked while looking at the electric mouse. Pikachu had found trust in Serena and decided to climb on her shoulder. Pikachu showed them that the others were in the dome playing with other pokemon.

As the two girls walked into the dome, they noticed the other three boys that they were friends with playing with some pokemon. When the boys noticed Serena and Shauna, they stopped what they were doing and went over to them.

"Hey girls!" Calem shouted as the three guys ran over to the girls.

"Hey boys," Shauna stated.

Pikachu hopped off of Serena and looked at the group from the ground. Serena looked around and noticed Ash was not around, "Has anyone seen Ash?"

"He left a while ago to do something, he will be right back," Tierno responded. He was confused as to why Ash would leave as he asked Professor Sycamore while the latter only really mentioned that Ash was going to get some 'fresh air'.

"As a matter a fact, there he is right now!" Trevor shouted pointing to the entrance of the dome.

Everyone even the pokemon turned their heads to see the trademark raven haired teenager. He had a new outfit now including gray pants, new black and red shoes, new green and black backpack that had supplies, his same old hat, black undershirt, and a new blue jacket. To finish everything off, Ash had fingerless gloves and his left one had his keystone on it (Kind off like Korrina has hers).

"Hey Pikachu!" Ash exclaimed as Pikachu climbed up to the shoulder of the newly dressed up person.

"My Ash you look great, I even like what you did to keep your keystone!" Sycamore stated as he walked in from behind and looked at how Ash had completely changed his style.

"T-thanks I may have thought it was about time to get a good place for it," Ash responded. The group then started complimenting Ash's new attire as they left the dome and reached the front of the lab leading up to street of Lumiose.

"Haha, my boy Ash, you look awesome!" Tierno replied.

"Hehe, he looks decent," Trevor replied.

"You have good taste when it comes to clothes, Ash," Calem replied while putting a hand on his hips.

"Dang! This guy gonna get some girls!" Shauna exclaimed with a wink.

"Thanks guys hehe," Ash said sheepishly while rubbing the back of his head and completely embarrassed by the amount of compliments he was getting for his new style.

"Here Ash, here is your pokedex," Sycamore said giving Ash a red pokedex that could light up and give Ash a reading of what pokemon he was looking at.

"Thanks professor," Ash responded with a thankful smile, something he had not done in quite a while.

"So Ash, you going on a journey?" Calem asked noticing the device that was given to the raven haired boy.

"Sure am! I want to put my current lifestyle behind me and change to be a like I was before!" Ash smiled while throwing a fist into the air.

Serena smiled at Ash, 'Welcome back person I admire' she thought as she put a hand over her heart and had a little bit of heat rise up to her cheeks. Serena's heart palpitated at the sight of Ash's attitude.

"One thing though, Pikachu?" Ash started as he turned to look down at the electric mouse.

"Pi?"

"Pikachu, these years you have been my best friend, do you want to be my partner?" Ash asked with a smile.

"PIKAPI PIPIKA!" Pikachu said excitedly as he tackled Ash into an embrace.

"We will have an amazing time Pikachu!" Ash replied. "Knowing that you don't want to be in a pokeball, I need to use this on you," Ash said as he hit Pikachu with a special pokeball with a lightning mark on it. Pikachu then glowed red for a bit until the red disappeared. "Alright it worked! Pikachu you are registered as my pokemon now!"

"Pi pikachu!" Pikachu jumped excitedly.

 **Leaving out the front of the lab as everyone was about to leave for their journey:**

Near the entrance of the lab, a blue frog was waiting for someone… Ash to be exact. "Fro!" Froakie said with a pokeball and passed it to Ash.

"Froakie?" Ash asked confused as he saw how the blue frog was giving Ash the pokeball like if it wanted to be captured.

"Amazing! Froakie has never stayed with a trainer before, and it chose you Ash!" Sycamore explained.

"Froakie, you want to come with Pikachu and I?" Ash asked in awe.

"Froakie!" Froakie exclaimed as he hit the pokeball and allowed himself to be captured. Ash looked at the pokeball in his hand and smiled… He knew this would be a special journey.

"Well it looks like we are all set! We ready to go?" Calem asked as he pulled the straps of his backpack.

"Yea we are!" Shauna responded.

"I guess this is goodbye for now Calem, Trevor and Tierno," Serena replied. "I am going to go with Shauna for now."

"Bye girls," the three boys said as they went one direction while Serena and Shauna went the other.

"Good luck Ash, I know you can do it!" Sycamore shouted as he motioned for Ash to walk out of the entrance of the gym.

"Great, now which gym should I challenge first?" Ash asked.

"Santalune is a good one to challenge, you should go there!"

"Thanks again professor," Ash replied with a smile as he pulled on the backpack straps with Pikachu on his shoulder.

"No problem," Sycamore replied as Ash left the mansion and went in a certain direction towards Prism Tower.

"Pikachu are you ready?"

"Pika pikachu!"

"You're right! Kalos league here we come!" Ash shouted throwing a fist into the air, for the second time in less than five minutes for the first time in a long time and started walking towards Prism Tower.

"Ash… Santalune is that way," Sycamore said while pointing in the opposite direction towards a route.

Ash turned around with a sweat drop. "Right, I knew that," Ash said as he walked in the right direction.

 **A/N: Here we go, the journey is starting and we know what Froakie means right?**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to a couple reviews:**

 **TheLegendaryGuy:**

I am glad you are enjoying the story so far! Things will get a lot stronger and in fact I had to edit the entire chapter 3 again because it would have ended up being less than even 3k words because I wrote this back when I was an immature writer. Still, I am improving, but I would say that beginning chapter 13 is when it will get more intense and interesting. Also, I would not want to waste my time writing in the team rocket trio, they are annoying AF… By that, I just have random encounters with Team Flare because they are the real bad guys in this to be honest. Thanks again for reading!


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: We are now on the road! Ash has gotten his first two pokemon and is now traveling to Santalune City!**

 **So… I know you guys are asking yourself if Ash will be having his Kalos Team. Well I can only answer is that he will have half of his Kalos team. In fact, he already has two of the three, Pikachu and Froakie. The last one of the three, you can guess. Also one of Ash's pokemon is hinted here, pay close attention to the foreshadow.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 5- Santalune City and Crazy Night (no this will not be crazy crazy)

 **Route going towards Santalune City:**

Ash and Pikachu were walking onwards towards the city, they would hit it in no time if they kept up the pace. "Pikachu, what do you think about battling?" Ash asked curiously to his partner on his shoulder. Ash was interested in battling, but he never knew if Pikachu was on board with the idea.

"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed excitedly. Pikachu loved to battle unlike most small pokemon. After training with Ash before even becoming a trainer, Pikachu had learned to be incredibly strong… Also, this gave Ash a good amount of experience without even knowing much about battles in the first place, he just is that creative.

Suddenly, a young boy that looked like he was twelve and had a green shirt along with a net stepped in front of Ash and Pikachu. With that. The boy looked at Ash and smirked, "Hey, I'm John, i see you are a trainer… Battle me then!"

"Ok…"

"Come on out Weedle!" John exclaimed while throwing a pokeball from his belt. The pokeball opened and from it came the small brown caterpillar pokemon. Ash could not believe it, he was getting into his first official battle.

"Froakie I choose you!" Ash shouted throwing out a pokeball from his belt. The pokeball materialized into the small blue frog that Ash had just captured.

"Fro!" Froakie shouted ready to battle and standing in the ground with determination in his eyes as he looked at his opponent.

 **Battle Music Begin! Ash (Froakie) vs John (Weedle):**

"Froakie start things off with bubble!" Ash commanded as he put his arm out on instinct as he wanted to feel like he was part of the action. Frankie retracted his head and from it came a barrage of blue bubbles that headed towards the Weedle. John saw the attack coming and had to be careful as the attack looked very powerful and he wanted to prevent getting hit with a terribly powerful attack.

"Weedle quick use string shot!" John shouted with a fist pump. Weedle got his mouth out and aimed at the bubble while secreting a string that was very sticky. String shot then was able to overpower bubble and the string shot headed right for Froakie who had wide eyes in confusion as to what to do.

"Dodge it quick!" Ash exclaimed as he saw the incoming string shot. From experience out in forests, Ash knows that string shot can be used numerous different ways to render an opponent unable to respond to the battle correctly and thus not able to win.

"Fro!" Froakie exclaimed as he regained his composure by Ash's words and jumped out of the way as the string shot missed and fell in front of Ash and Pikachu at a harmless difference.

"Great, let's use the same strategy use your frubbles!" Ash exclaimed as he raised his hand and then formed a fist which he pumped with all of power. Froakie then reached into his mane and pulled out some frubbles while throwing them at Weedle. The frubbles did not miss and actually immobilized Weedle like if string shot would have worked. "Now use bubble!" Ash exclaimed as he put his hand out and pumping his other fist. Froakie unleashed the bubbles and then made them collide with Needle's body which terminated in a small explosion.

When the smoke cleared, Weedle was on the ground completely unable to battle. John was at a loss for words as he saw Weedle completely unconscious and defeated.

"Weedle return," John replied recalling Weedle. "You are a strong dude." John then came up to Ash and handed him some Kaleuros. With that, John walked away in a different direction than Ash. The Raven haired trainer just stood there speechless.

Ash just recalled Froakie before turning to Pikachu.

"Pikachu… this is how we could have sustained our selves," Ash said while looking at Pikachu with complete regret to what he had done in the past.

"Pi pikapi," Pikachu replied with the same reaction.

Ash then decided to lighten up the subject with Pikachu a bit so he called out something both he and Pikachu had loved to do. "Well, let's get something to eat! A pokemon center can't be far!" Ash exclaimed as he left towards the path with Pikachu on his shoulder. It was a amazing how Ash is really getting into this mentality that he was changing for the better. Through that, he is showing that he can focus on other things. In fact, Ash's suicidal thoughts were very much not even existent at this point.

A little bit later, the path turned towards what looked like a Pokemon Center, a building with a red roof. It was the first time Ash had seen one outside of Lumiose, but he did know what Pokemon Centers held. He needed to go in there and heal up his pokemon, the thing is that Ash was still kind of unsure about how everything worked, but he knew he could trust nurse Joy with a close pokemon like Pikachu, so he knew he was in good hands.

"Hello there, I am nurse joy, would you like me to heal your pokemon?" Joy asked Ash as he walked up to the counter of the nicely lit pokemon center. The atmosphere of the interior was very calm and it had the pokemon Center jingle playing in calmly around the lobby.

"Yes please," Ash replied handing over Froakie's pokeball and Pikachu who got inside the stretcher. Nurse Joy gave Ash a polite bow and took the two pokemon inside the clinic to be healed. Ash then turned to sit in one of the benches in the pokemon center before he heard a familiar voice call out his name.

"Yo Ash, over here!" Calem waved over to Ash, Ash had not noticed Calem when he walked in. Ash decided to go over and greet the trainer.

"Hey Calem, what's up?" Ash asked with a smile as he sat down next to him. Calem was probably bored playing games with his Holo Caster as he was sitting in the bench with a bored expression in his face until he saw Ash walk in the door.

"Nothing, great to see you back to your old self again," Calem replied with a warm smile. Ash really did not understand what "old self" meant. Maybe it was something to do with his behavior because if he did recall, he was not the most amazing person to ever live in Kalos.

"Old self? But I had not known you before," Ash replied confused to the topic.

"Hehe, Serena told me how you act when you are normal," Calem replied as he shrugged his shoulders. "It seems that when you both met, you were a very cheerful person full of life… And I kind of see what she means by that." Calem winked at Ash showing that Calem probably knows something that Ash doesn't.

"Oh, yea I guess you are right," Ash replied sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head. Ash then remembered something. "Wait where is Tierno and Trevor?" Ash asked remembering the other two guys that were with him at the time.

"They went over to catch some pokemon over near Santalune City, I just had a battle so I am healing up my pokemon," Calem replied while signaling to his belt. The belt showed that there was only one pokeball meaning that Calem was probably healing a pokemon.

"I guess they must have gone ahead then," Ash replied putting two on two together. "Look's like there might be some cool pokemon to catch over there. By the way, have you caught any new pokemon?"

"Yea check it out!" Calem replied as he threw out the pokeball that was in his belt. A flashing light consumed the two as a small tiny robin pokemon appeared and looked at the two while flying in place.

"Fletching!" The small pokemon called out as he went to up Calem and sat on his shoulder. Calem smiled at the small bird as Ash grew curious as to what it was.

"Awesome, he looks so cool," Ash replied as he scanned it with his pokedex. "A fletchling, that seems like it will grow to be a strong one!"

"Fletchling!" Fletchling replied as Calem recalled it back to his pokeball. Calem then put the pokeball back on his belt and Calem returned his gaze at Ash to answer the remark Ash just made..

"Fletchling can evolve into a Talonflame, I am going to raise it well so that I can have an awesome flying type," Calem said with pride and a smirk.

"Hehe, I am going to need a flying type soon, but I am also hoping for a fire type, so let's see how things go," Ash replied hoping that he would find the right pokemon to help him with his flying issues and that could spark up a little bit of fire at times.

Suddenly the pokemon center bell rang. Ash and Calem poked their heads over to the counter to see that Nurse Joy had finished healing the Froakie and Pikachu and even another pokeball that must have belonged to Calem. Ash and Calem then walked up to the counter and looked at their pokeballs and in Ash's case, Pikachu who was in the stretcher.

"Mr. Ketchum your Froakie and Pikachu are healthy! Mr. Xavier, your Chespin is doing just fine!" Joy called to Ash and to Calem who shared a smile between the two as Calem reached out and grabbed Chespin's pokeball.

"Thanks!" Ash replied as he recollected Pikachu and his pokeball that contained Froakie. "Hey Pikachu!" Ash said as he turned to his electric mouse who was in the stretches looking at Ash.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu called out as he got on top of Ash's shoulder making the pokemon and trainer share a small smile between the two.

"Ash, want to head over to Santalune? I heard everyone was going to pass through there," Calem asked.

"Sure Calem, let's see if we can find some other trainers to battle, we should not be far from the city by now," Ash replied while pumping a fist because they both wanted to get into some more action.

"Ok, let's go!" Both trainers exclaimed as they left the Pokemon center with excitement and back into the adventures of the route.

They started walking while encountering a lot of wild pokemon along the way. Some interested Ash, but Ash wanted to have the pokemon choose to go along with Ash. Calem on the other hand, was eager to catch pokemon as he caught a couple of Pokemon on the way including a Ralts that Calem was extremely excited about for some apparent reason.

It was getting dark, but Ash and Calem had Santalune in sight now, they both started running as they were going to go there and challenge the gym the next day until suddenly they were stopped by two men in orange suits...

"Well, if it isn't two trainers, we would like to steal your pokemon," One of them said with a dark tone.

"No way!" Calem and Ash shouted in unison.

"Yes way," the other grunt responded while bobbing a pokeball in his hand. Both grunts then threw their pokeballs out into the air. Both pokeballs opened to materialize some Houndour. "I think Xerocic would like some strong pokemon like that Pikachu of yours to help out in his experimentation."

"Pikachu, I choose you!" Ash yelled barely dazed by the declaration while pointing into the sky.

"Pika!"Pikachu shouted in a strong tone as he jumped above Ash and landed in front of him while collecting electricity on his cheeks.

"I believe in you Chespin!" Calem shouted as he threw out a pokeball which opened up to the same little green pokemon that Calem had chosen as a partner, Chespin.

 **Team Flare Music! Ash and Calem (Pikachu and Chespin) vs Grunt 1 and 2 (Houndour and Houndour):**

"Houndour use flamethrower!" both grunts shouted in unison while mirroring their movements by putting their hands out palm down.

"Pikachu use iron tail on the ground and make a dust cloud!" Ash called out on instinct trying to give himself and Calem the advantage. Pikachu made his tail glow white and stiffen and then Pikachu jumped into the air and slammed the tail into the bare dirt of the pathway. This created some dust to be picked up into the air and collide with the flamethrowers. Because the jets of fire were restricted of their oxygen, it was impossible for the flamethrowers to pass through and it created a small shield that left Pikachu and Chespin unharmed.

'Hmmm, I see, Ash is unpredictable when it comes to battles' Calem thought now understanding Ash's battle style. Calem then decided that they had the advantage and put out his fist while shouting: "Chespin use vine whip!"

"Chesss pin!" Chespin called out as he summoned vines from his sides and then shooting them to tie up the two Houndour. The vines went around the Hourndour's snouts and torsos as they were completely immobile in front of the grunts that were staring in disbelief and recoiling in shock at the same time. Both houndour struggled to break free, but it was nearly impossible to get out of Chespin's vine whip with that tight of a grip and specially since both Houndours were very small in size.

"Pikachu use electroball!" Ash called out while putting his hand out and then changing that hand into a fist and putting his other hand out. Pikachu then charged himself up in electricity and formed an electric sphere on his tail as he called out his usual Pikachu cry. Then, Pikachu launched the sphere he developed at the two Houndour and the two fire and dark pokemon got enveloped in an explosion of electricity.

Both grunts stared in shock as the dust cleared revealing that the Houndour cannot battle. With sour expressions in their faces, the grunts recalled their pokemon to their pokeballs and then left into thin air.

Ash and Calem stared at the path in front of them in shock as Calem silently recalled Chespin. Ash then turned to Calem and simply said, "Well, that was easy…"

"Yea, they were not expecting that destruction," Calem responded with a slight giggle and then turned his gaze to the city that the two trainers were overlooking. "Let's run to Santalune City, we need to meet up with everyone else!"

"Yea let's go!" Ash exclaimed as they ran in the direction of the city while trying to beat the setting sun in the horizon.

 **Inside Santalune City:**

Not long into Santalune City, Tierno and Trevor were both spotted sitting inside the Pokemon center. Our duo and the electric mouse ran straight up to the Charmander and Squirtle trainer as they saw them. When Ash and Calem got near the two, the two recognized the duo and greeted them.

"Hey Calem! Ash I didn't expect to see you here!" Tierno exclaimed as he waved at the duo with Trevor who was putting away his camera into his pocket.

"Hey there, we met up and beat a couple of crooks over in route 4, they thought they could mess with us," Ash replied with laughter as he recalled what had just happened at route 4.

"Pikachu..." Pikachu sweatdropped at that comment.

Behind the talking boys, the girls were walking into the pokemon center when they noticed all the boys. Serena was the first to notice and whispered to Shauna who was playing around with some settings in her pokedex to customize the device. "Hey, they boys are here… wait, is that Ash with them?" Serena asked as she tensed up.

Shauna instantly looked up at seeing Serena's reaction and smirked as she literally shoved Serena towards the boys, "Why don't you talk to him? Look he seems like a really nice guy now, you were right about him!" Serena tensed up even more trying not to die from the stress.

"Ok…" Serena took a deep breath and relaxed as she resigned that once that Shauna had made up her mind about something, there was no turning back… Especially if she could continue teasing Serena. With that, Shauna dragged Serena towards the other boys who were talking.

"Hey boys!" Shauna shouted as the duo walked to the boys. "Didn't expect to see you here Ash," Shauna added while pointing her eyes at Serena thus making the latter recoil.

"Hehe, just Calem and I running into some bad guys in the route," Ash explained as Pikachu kept sweat dropping in Ash's shoulder.

"I see," Shauna responded still not convinced about the honey blonde next to her.

"So, any new pokemon caught?" Tierno asked out of the blue. Tierno then took out a pokeball from his belt and threw it to reveal a flashing light that revealed a small pokemon that looked like a lily pad.

"Lotad!" The small pokemon cried as Pikachu got down from Ash's shoulders to greet it.

"Pika pika?"

"Lo lotad!"

Ash and the others used their pokedexes on Lotad amazed at the pokemon. It was so nice to be exposed to a pokemon they had never seen before.

"Check mine out," Trevor starts, he send out a Flabebe. Same result with the pokedexes and the excitement.

"Are you guys ready to challenge the gym yet?" Serena asked looking at the three pokemon interacting on the ground.

Tierno and Trevor pulled out Lotad and Flabebe's pokeball as they recalled their pokemon back.

"I think we are! Let's go there first thing when we wake up," Ash exclaimed throwing a fist in the air. This made Shauna nudge Serena in the shoulder. Serena just lightly blushed, but hid her face.

"Well it is getting late, why don't we go to sleep?" Calem asked the others with a slight yawn.

"Sure, we can all go to bed here in the pokemon center," Trevor replied. "Anyways, I doubt the gym leader would take any challengers at this time anyways.

The group made it up to Nurse Joy. "Can we have a room?" Trevor asked with a smile which Nurse Joy returned to the orange haired trainer and the people behind him.

"They are three people bedrooms so you will have to split yourselves up," Joy replied while handing out two keys to the rooms the others will be staying at to Trevor.

The gang made it upstairs of the pokemon center, this is when things went crazy...

"Calem and Trevor, come with me, we gotta talk strategy," Tierno replied as he dragged the other two away into one of the rooms that Trevor had the keys to. Just in time though, Trevor tossed the keys at Shauna who caught then in time for the other room that they would stay at…

But…

Leaving Ash and Pikachu alone with two girls to spend the night with.

"Ummmm, so that means I am crashing with y'all?" Ash asked trying not to sound all creepy because he knew girls probably would like their privacy.

Shauna took the opportunity for Serena, "As long as you follow our rules: you have to keep your hands to yourself at all times, no peeking when Serena and me change, and we get to peek on you." Pikachu started to laugh instantly at Shayna's rude humor which made Ash look blankly at the brunette possibly not understanding… But Serena did understand.

"SHAUNA!" Serena exclaimed in terror with a red face.

"Uhhhh…" Ash said completely oblivious to what the meaning of everything was. "Wait… What would happen if you two break one of the rules?" Ash asked while pointing at the girls.

"Then you can break the rules with us!" Shauna exclaimed with a wink as Shauna turned the key and went into the room with the others. Pikachu was bawling at this point because of the dirty minded mouse that he was.

"Shauna…" Serena muttered to herself with clenched fists around her body.

"Serena relax, we will have fun tonight!" Ash replied with a smile towards the honey blonde haired girl.

"Pikapi pikachu!" Pikachu agreed.

Shauna looked at Ash with a shocked look on her face face. Serena hid her steaming eyes and blushing face as she heard this.

Ash instantly noticed the error in what he said since he knew that by fun he meant something that did not involve physical contact, "In an appropriate way."

"Wow Ash, and here I thought you were dense as hell," Shauna said out of the blue while looking at Ash with a smirk. Obviously the former was attempting to be suggestive, but she ended up causing some pain to Ash.

Ash then looked down hiding his eyes on his cap. Serena and Shauna both tensed up. Serena spoke up, "Ash, are you ok? You can tell me anything." Serena at this point was in front of Ash while grabbing his shoulders. Shauna figured out how touching Serena was being.

"Sorry," Ash said as he looked up at Serena's blue eyes. "It took time, but I made myself learn about that stuff eventually, it's just that it brings a bad memory of my parents."

Serena and Shauna shared a quick glance and turned back to Ash…

"It's ok Ash," Shauna said with a reassuring smile at the raven haired trainer.

"Besides you have us!" Serena exclaimed. "In an appropriate way," Serena corrected as she covered her blush. Shauna giggled since Serena was very hesitant to say the last part.

"Pikapi, pikachu!" Pikachu called out to his trainer while getting on Ash's shoulder and then jumping down from Ash's shoulder to jump on a bed.

"Yea, let's go to sleep Pikachu, but first I have to change," Ash replied as he went to the closet and got undressed. The girls had dressed up into their PJs while Ash was changing. They did not notice Pikachu staring from the side though… so lucky him.

Ash walked back into the room… completely shirtless. The girls stared at him and Serena violently blushed figuring out that Ash was in very, very good shape. "Forgot my shirt," Ash said as he got his shirt out of his backpack and put it on to later lie down in bed. The girls also laid down in bed.

"Good night!" all three said as Ash shut off the light of the room leaving everyone in darkness.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted more excited than ever bringing a thought to everyone's mind.

'Did Pikachu watch us this entire time… I don't remember him coming out of the closet with Ash…' the girls asked themselves.

"Pikachu, did you go into the closet with me when I changed?" Ash asked out of the blue towards the electric mouse sleeping next to him.

"Pika…" Pikachu said with guilt.

The girls tried to maintain their cool, but inside they were screaming, "Pikachu, what were you doing?"

"Pikachu…?" Ash asked. The girls then lost it they got up. Pikachu saw two shadows in the darkness approach the bed he and Ash were in causing him to instantly jump out of the bed. The girls saw this as they approached the rodent and chased the electric mouse to make it pay for its deeds around the room. Chaos and havoc being caused as Ash watched and sweatdropped.

"Pika pikapi!" Pikachu shouted with a sweatdrop as the girls chased down the electric mouse. Shauna then got ahold of Pikachu, but Pikachu was already too startled. "Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu began to shock everyone in the room causing everyone to get electrocuted.

"AHHH!" the three screamed, but Ash's scream blended in well with the girls.

 **In the other room with the boys:**

The boys were getting ready for bed, they had just finished talking strategy for the gym when suddenly, "AHHHHHH!"

"Did you guys hear that?" Calem asked as he looked towards where the sound came from.

"It sounded like the girls… wait… DID WE LEAVE ASH TO SLEEP WITH THE GIRLS?!" Tierno asked while putting both his hands over his head in shock.

"WE TOTALLY FORGOT!" Trevor replied. "Should we go check on them?"

"Nah, I think Ash just got lucky and got to see something he shouldn't have… dang it I should have stayed with the girls," Calem replied while facepalming.

"NO, I SHOULD HAVE!" Tierno replied while pointing at himself.

"NO! ME!" Trevor retaliated while crossing his arms.

"Guys shut up!" Calem replied and rolled his eyes. "We can just ask Ash for a detailed description tomorrow."

"You're right," Tierno replied while sighing and looking down.

"Still should have been me," Trevor replied as he went to sleep with a pout on his face.

 **A/N: And this is why I wanted to make this one rated T. This type of misleading humor will stay at times, but the plot will keep moving well.**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **Thor94:**

Darkrai is a strong legendary, but who said that legendaries have to be stronger than normal pokemon necessarily? Don't worry about Ash's team, the six he will have will be extremely powerful!

 **TheLegendaryGuy:**

It was a bit of drama with the bed scene, but yea, other than that, Ash begins his journey. Also, he will travel to Santalune with someone, don't worry about Serena, who said she won't travel with Ash? In fact, I never planned in keeping them too separated ;)

 **Cutesaralisa:**

#Amourshippingforthewin! ;)

 **Guest 1:**

Thanks! I Will keep it up! Glad you are enjoying it!

 **Guest 2:**

I think I should put this out there: I do not think I am going to have Ash do this in the present because then that would mean that he is not developing like I want to. The main thing is, I want Ash to be emotional and aggressive, but not suicidal anymore. Other than that, be patient, because the scene is probably on its way, but to a certain extent.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Wooooo gym battles now! I do want to say that this may not be my best gym battle since I had to fit it inside of probably three gym battles before it.**

 **I also want you guys to note that there is not much distance between these stands and the battlefield and for that reason I did not make it so that there is a break when I shift places.**

 **Other than that...**

 **I hope you guys enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own pokemon**

Chapter 6- Ash and his Cheesy Tactics

 **In the morning:**

"Battle style… Pikachu, remember how we battled yesterday?" Ash whispered to his electric rodent.

"Pi," Pikachu nodded his head.

"Well I think I will be able to develop my main battle style," Ash replied with a wink. Ash got out of bed, but Serena and Shauna were still asleep. Ash decided to go and get dressed, he was still shaken up by Pikachu last night. With that, Ash went into the closet to change back to his attire, this time with Pikachu alongside him to not cause any more disruptions.

Serena and Shauna then got up, they were both very shaken up, but seemed to forget they had slept with a boy in the same room. "Hey Serena, let's get ready," Shauna said.

"Ok Shauna," Serena replied as both girls got to their underwear… just to pay the price for not remembering about something.

"Hey girls, I think I am ready for my gym battle, we should go meet up with the others s-" Ash started as he and Pikachu froze up looking at Serena and Shauna. "I think I should go back to changing." Ash started walking back to the closet, his face was probably redder than a tomato berry.

Serena and Shauna just stood there, both had intense blushes. "He got lucky this time…" Shauna stated with a red face.

"I hope he liked it… I mean, yea he's lucky we didn't get our hands on him," Serena replied while stuttering of course Shauna noticed her mistake. Why would Serena want Ash to enjoy the eye candy? That was the main question that perplexed Shauna.

"Hmm, seems like you wanted him to see us like this," Shauna taunted with a smirk while coming up behind Serena.

"What?!" Serena replied with a huge blush trying to cover her face.

"Hehe good luck," Shauna replied as the two girls finished dressing up to their usual clothes.

"Can I come back out?" Ash asked through the door.

"Yes!" Shauna replied and then turned to Serena and whispered, "Serena, go get him."

Ash opened the door and sighed. The girls were fully dressed this time. "Wow I thought I would get beat up!" Ash replied as he walked out of the room with his backpack. "But we have a gym battle to have!" The girls did the same and followed.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu said pointing with his tail as the others made it to the lobby of the pokemon center. The other three boys were waiting in the middle of the pokemon center.

"Hey guys!" Ash exclaimed while running up ahead of the girls with a smile.

"Ash! Tell us the details man!" Tierno started as Ash got at close proximity. The girls noticed Ash being interrogated and shared a disgusted glance before going up to go see what they were talking about.

"Yea, what happened, we need to know," Calem agreed with a smile and begging attitude towards Ash.

"Well Calem, it seems Shauna has it in for you, she has a picture of you with a heart and everything in her bag," Ash lied completely making Calem fall for the bait. He just wanted to see if he could figure out why Calem and Shauna were so close… And Ash found out why.

"Yes!" Calem shouted not attracting attention, but at this point Shauna and Serena were gaining on the boys.

"Now Ash, about the girls," Trevor started while winking as in telling Ash, 'tell me how they looked'.

"Oh, yea, great bodies, you won't believe the look on their faces when I saw them," Ash replied with a small blush. Pikachu sighed and did the same.

"Lucky you…" Tierno, Trevor and Calem replied while crossing their arms, but Ash noticed he had to correct them.

"What, the most I saw was their underwear. I could have let go, but they would have killed me for not keeping my han-" Ash started.

"(cough cough)" Shauna replied. She had only heard the second part of the last thing Ash said and she could have guessed what the raven haired trainer was talking about.

"S-Shauna," Ash replied. "S-Serena, I also thought you were not behind me."

"Lemme guess, these perverts asked for the details?" Shauna asked with a unconvinced look.

Ash smirked and saw his big chance to humiliate Calem, "It's him you want! He's the one that has a crush on you!" Ash exclaimed pointing at Calem.

"What?!" Calem and Shauna shouted in disbelief at each other. Of course this was the most obvious thing the two could have heard and of course now the jet black haired trainer and the brunette were laughing uncontrollably.

Serena started laughing really hard, "Hahaha, look at that Shauna you just got out played for once!"

"Well nevermind that! We have a gym to conquer!" Calem shouted to which everyone put their hands in the air with excitement.

 **Later at the gym:**

The group had just passed through the entrance and admired the many pictures that were posted. Trevor immediately was amazed by all the pokemon variety because it seemed that Viola was a person that enjoyed photographing. The group then passed through some glass doors and found a woman standing at the other side of the battlefield. The battlefield was very plain as it had only dirt and two trainer boxes, but there was also some trees on the side and the stands at close proximity to the battlefield. There was also some very nice raindrop shaped lights dangling from the ceiling which everyone admired as they walked down to the center of the battlefield to be greeted by the woman.

"Hello there, I am Viola, the Santalune Gym Leader, I see that there are six of you, how many of you are challenging me?" The woman called Voila asked. She had blonde hair and adventurous clothes as well as a camera dangling from her abdomen. Trevor had hearts in his eyes of course.

"Us four! Ash, Trevor, Tierno, and me!" Calem responded enthusiastically to Viola. The other three trainers were shaking uncontrollably with excitement.

"Very well, I accept your challenge, but I won't be easy, also after each battle I will restore all of my pokemon's health for you guys to switch." Viola instructed as to how the battles would go.

"Haha ok," Ash replied. Then suddenly a woman with a Helioptile came in from the glass doors and Helioptile saw Ash's electric mouse and started playing with Pikachu.

"Hello there, I am Alexa, Viola's sister, would you guys mind if I watched?" Alexa asked with a warm smile. She had brunette hair and a blond top. Her eyes matched her sister's and she had a camera with microphone on her head as like a sort of recording device.

"Not at all," Serena replied happily answering for all of the others.

"Allow me to go first!" Trevor stated eagerly. Trevor figured that Ash would have probably wanted to go first because he was so hyped up about the gym battle.

"Sure, but I am next," Tierno interjected while putting Trevor in a friendly headlock which caused Trevor to struggle to get out.

"Let's go! I go third!" Calem responded while pumping his fist.

"I don't mind being dead last," Ash said which surprised his friends not expecting such a response. Ash wanted to view the strategies and watch closely the battle. He knew it was 2 on 2 and a bug type gym, but he sensed tricks that he would need to be creative on in order to win.

A bit later:

"Congratulations Calem, you guys were awesome, you all got gym badges!" Shauna congratulated while talking to Calem with a slight blush.

Ash was now confident, but he knew he needed to prepare for things that he noticed. Sticky web, Sleep powder, and an ice battle field. These things had been presented to the group during the battles and Ash knew that if he could get through these, he would win."

"Ash, you're up," Trevor said with a hyped up face. Ash smirked looking at his friends noticing that they would support him all the way made him feel flattered.

"Thanks guys, I guess I am going to go battle!" Ash exclaimed while forming fists with his hands and tensing up his muscle tone. Alexa noticed Ash's confidence and liked the way he was determined.

Ash was walking to the trainer box when he heard a familiar voice, "You can do it Ash!"

"I know I can Serena!" Ash shouted back while waving at the stands noticing his friends all ready to watch him battle.

"Dang, now you are not as shy as I thought you were," Shauna teased Serena which caused Serena to tense up a lot.

"Shut up…" Serena responded with a slight blush and looking at the railing she was leaning over to prevent embarrassment.

 **At the battlefield (Ash POV):**

I look at Viola, I notice she is determined to win this match. Trevor had won thanks to type advantage, Tierno's dancing helped him win and Calem was able to use strong power against Viola to win. Now what will I do?

What is my style?

What is my path to victory?

What is my _Road to Mastery?_

The ref steps up to the ref box and looks to me and Viola who are standing across from each other in a normal dirt field. The ref then speaks up, "Both trainers, please choose your pokemon!"

I look over and see Pikachu looking ready to battle, "Pikachu I choose you!" I shout as I point to the air at around a 45 degree angle.

"Pika!" Pikachu yelled as he jumped over me and fell to the ground in front of me on the dirt battlefield. Once Pikachu landed in all fours, he began to gather a lot of electricity in his cheeks which made me smirk.

"Surskit let's do this!" Viola shouted revealing Surskit from a red and white pokeball which she threw. One look at Surskit and I knew that once it sets up ice beam on the battlefield, it will slide with amazing speed.

I had to watch out.

I knew she was going to lead with Surskit, but I needed to make sure I could stand up to her with strength.

"This will be a 2 on 2 pokemon battle, the battle will be over when all 2 pokemon on either side are unable to continue!" the ref instructed to which I nodded to the instructions along with Viola. I then saw the ref put her hand down on the midline of the battlefield to begin the battle:

"Battle... Begin!"

 **Time for battle music! Ash (Pikachu) vs Viola (Surskit):**

"Pikachu use thunderbolt!" I exclaim while pumping my fist put in front of me. I was eager to make the first move and get the advantage. Maybe I could defeat Surskit with one move!

"Pika...CHUUU!" Pikachu shouts while shooting the lightning bolt at Surskit. I look at the size of the bolt and I have to admit that our troubles in Lumiose have payed off if Pikachu was able to make such strength. I look over at Viola who seems rather impressed and I was sure that I would give her the biggest challenge ever!

"Counter with signal beam!" I hear Viola order while putting her hand out. I look at Surskit who charges up a pink beam from the antennae on its head and launched it to counter the thunderbolt Pikachu shot. Both moves collide in an explosion that made a small blast in mid air. "Now use ice beam!" Surskit charged up the beam of ice and then released it, but instead of shooting it at Pikachu, Surskit aimed towards the sky and then freezing particles fell to the battlefield causing the field to be coated with a smooth layer of ice. This caused Pikachu and me to recoil a little bit despite the fact that I knew this was something I could expect, but the fact that I didn't know any counters to use with Pikachu for it made me make my next decision.

"Pikachu return!" I shout and Pikachu struggles to walk as he slips a little, but he gets to my side safely. I knew that Surskit would pull it off, but I did not know that it would this early in the match either. I reach to my belt and feel the circumference of a pokeball. Then I grip my pokeball and threw it towards the field, "Froakie I choose you!"

"Froakie!" Froakie shouts as the flashing light comes out to show off my first capturer pokemon. Suddenly Froakie slips on the ice and falls. I look over to Froakie and made sure he was alright, which he was. Froakie then gets up and looks at Surskit with a determined pose. I noticed how Froakie got into trouble back in Lumiose and that maybe his fighting experience may come in handy.

"Surskit use signal beam!" Viola shouts making Surskit send a multicolored beam right at Froakie. I knew Froakie had great mobility and with looking at the collision between signal beam and thunderbolt before, I knew that signal beam was a rather slow move so I could easily get Froakie out of the way.

"Froakie dodge it!" I shout while spreading my arms, but Froakie does not dodge, in fact he summons more versions of himself. Even though Froakie may have been able to dodge rather easily I was surprised to see Froakie perform such a move.

"Awesome! Froakie just learned double team!" Trevor shouted from the stands. I instantly grew psyched knowing I had another great tool to allow me to win. This could go my way after all anyways.

"Awesome Froakie!" I shout. "Now use the frubbles to make a safe way for you to travel!" I order. Froakie starts running while reaching over to his neck and throwing frubbles at the ice battlefield that helped him move across without a problem. The frubbles cause Froakie to not slip as he runs through the ice. I knew that I could be ready for anything that was going to be put in my way because of this since the ice field did not matter to me anymore. "Now use bubble!"

"Signal beam!"

Both moves collide, but I am prepared, "Great, now use double team!" I exclaim. Again Froakie makes copies of himself. And Surskit becomes completely confused from not being able to see where the real Froakie is. "Use pound!" I shout as I make a fist and pump it in front of me. Froakie then reaches Surskit and uses a strong thrust of his white glowing hand to send it flying.

"Surskit no!" Viola shouts in panic as I notice that Surskit is unable to move and one move away from being out of the battle. With that, I decide to go for the grand finale.

"Froakie finish it with bubble!"

"Froa kie kie kie!" Froakie shouts and I see that I have defeated Surskit, who is lying on the ground with an unconscious expression on its face.

"Surskit is unable to battle, Froakie wins!" the ref exclaimed while aiming the flag at me.

"Well done Froakie, now return and take a good rest," I say proudly as I recall Froakie. Froakie materialized into red energy and goes inside the pokeball. I look at the pokeball and smile as the pokeball shakes in happiness. I then put the pokeball back on my belt and prepare for Viola's last pokemon.

 **Normal POV:**

"Dang Ash is better than I thought," Tierno admitted to which the others nodded their heads. Something about Ash made him stronger than most had ever thought.

"My last pokemon, go Vivillon," Viola shouts as Vivillon comes out gracefully from the pokeball. The butterfly like pokemon stares at Ash with a sense of power which Ash could not be less eager to battle.

"Pikachu I choose you!" Ash shouts as Pikachu comes out from Ash's side and jumps into the battlefield with new determination which Ash was hoping to use.

"Pika!" Pikachu shouts. Ash was trying to give Ash another chance to win him the battle. Pikachu sensed the opportunity and refused to back down.

"Hmm, seems strong, but I can still beat it, use gust!" Viola shouts while extending her arms. Vivillon sends a gust that starts making Pikachu struggle. This gave Ash an idea since Ash needed to make sure that Pikachu did not lose his balance. Ash knew that if this worked he could win.

"Pikachu, ground your tail!" Ash exclaimed as Pikachu did just that to prevent getting pushed further. Ash noticed how Pikachu was extremely fine while not having to hang onto the ground to prevent getting pushed around. Pikachu then straightened himself out and Ash have his next command. "Now use thunderbolt!"

"Pika...CHUUU!" Pikachu shouted as he launched the crackling beam straight at Vivillow who is still flying gracefully in the air. The thunderbolt ran really fast and instantly struck Vivillon head on making Vivillon recoil in damage. Vivillon straightened itself out and kept flying a little weaker this time.

"Vivillon!" Viola exclaimed as she saw Vivillon get hurt. "Quick Vivillon use sleep powder!" Vivillon sent the sleep powder to Ash which made Pikachu drowsy. Ash saw this as a potential threat and began to feel completely panicked as to what he could do. He needed to be creative, but how?

"Pikachu…" Ash muttered until and idea came to his head. It was risky, but it was a risk that Ash had to take if he was ever going to be able to beat Vivillon and get the badge. "Pikachu use electro ball on yourself!"

"Pika pika pika pika kapi!" Pikachu shouted with a soft and drowsy tone as he charged up the electric ball and launched it straight upwards with weakness to then collapse and fall asleep. Everyone watched carefully as the electrical then arched upwards and began to fall faster and faster. When electro ball hit, Pikachu was back to normal standing and gathering electricity. "Pika!" Pikachu shouted with a smirk and an energized expression. Everyone gave shocked faces.

"Now use thunderbolt once more!" Ash exclaimed while punching the air as Pikachu then surrounded himself with electricity and launched a crackling beam at the butterfly. Vivillon was very weak from the last thunderbolt and was unable to avoid the attack. This time, Vivillon could not tolerate the attack as well as it could and started falling towards the ground with a thud and some dust clouds that came from the ground. Vivillon could not take the additional damage from the fall and lost consciousness.

"Vivillon is unable to battle which means that Ash wins!" the ref exclaimed as Ash ran to the field and hugged Pikachu.

"Pikachu, you were amazing," Ash said while he scratched behind Pikachu's ears which Pikachu loved.

"Chaaaa…." Pikachu cooed in pleasure as he got the praisal from Ash. Pikachu was proud of himself for his performance during the battle.

 **A little later:**

"Ash, as proof of your win at the Santalune City Gym, here is the bug badge!" Viola stated as she handed Ash the bug badge. A brown beetle shaped medal that Ash gratefully accepted.

"Alright… I won, the bug badge!" Ash exclaimed while making a pose.

"Pi pikachu!"

"Froa kie kie!"

"Congratulations Ash," his friends said as they were amazed by Ash's battle.

"Thanks!" Ash said slightly embarrassed by the praise, but then he turned to Pikachu and Froakie, "But without these two, this entire battle would not have been possible." Ash's two pokemon smiled with glee and tackled their trainer into a hug making the others smile at the embrace.

 **Later outside the gym:**

The group was talking outside. The day was nice and still young so the group decided to split their own ways in order to get ready for their next step. At that time, Alexa cane down from the stairs of the gym and poked Ash on the shoulder while asking the others if she could have a minute with Ash. Ash and Pikachu then followed Alexa inside the gym and then pulled something out of her bag.

"Ash, I want you to have this," Alexa said handing Ash a capsule with a purple egg inside. "It's a pokemon egg."

"Pika…" Pikachu said in awe.

"Huh? Why?" Ash asked in awe as he looked at and admired the egg that was now in his hands.

"I want you to have it, I know you will make it a strong pokemon," Alexa winked at the raven haired boy.

"Oh umm thanks," Ash replied with a toothy grin and then Ash returned his gaze to the egg with an extremely hyped up look on his face.

"Haha, your welcome, well I have to go, see ya!" Alexa said as she walked off into the glass doors that lead to the battlefield while leaving Ash with an egg inside the hallway lined with photos of different pokemon. Ash took the capsule and carefully put it in his backpack. Then Ash and Pikachu walked out of the doors of the gym and outside towards where the gang was.

"Ok, for the next gym in Cyllage city we need to go through Lumiose, but I want to catch a water pokemon so I am going to go this way instead," Calem said while pointing to the route that lead away from Lumiose City.

"Let me help, I love water types!" Tierno exclaimed while putting on a dance pose.

"Hey, I am coming too," Trevor replied while grabbing his camera. "I want to take some pictures!"

"And me!" Shauna remarked with a smirk. "I need to study up on what water pokemon can do for showcases!"

Serena then saw her big chance, so she turned to the raven haired trainer, "Ash, if you are going to Lumiose, can I come with you?" Serena asked Ash shyly.

"Sure Serena!" Ash replied as the others began to walk away from Ash and the honey blonde teenager. "Let's go!" Ash exclaimed as he began to walk towards the direction of Lumiose City.

"Yea!" Serena shouted as she followed Ash and Pikachu. She felt more confident around Ash now. She knew she would want to keep growing this new perk of hers.

 **A/N: Haha, Amourshipping next episode? Maybe, but I do want to see Serena witness something dark from Ash's personality and I also want to change some things from the anime when it came to amourshipping.**

 **I do want to apologize as I may have made the first gym badge seem like a breeze for Ash.**

 **"He is supposed to be a completely inexperienced trainer!"**

 **OK, yes, but here is the thing: Ash has experience battling with Pikachu before he initiated his journey. Also, the fact that Ash had some battles before the gym helped.**

 **Also, I wanted to make it seem like in the beginning pokemon are more frail, thus they faint quicker. For that reason I made the battle really fast.**

 **Ash may be a rookie trainer at this time, but he quickly grows to become a veteran like in XY and XYZ… You saw a little of this in the first chapter and will soon enough when we go back to that time.**

 **Also, any ideas on the egg? This will be one of Ash's coolest pokemon in the anime in my opinion, but I am going to buff him so much so be hyped for what I will make this guy do!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **Michmech:** TY, glad you are enjoying it. Yes, I will keep the comedy at times, I am not that cold xD…

 **Roger0326:** TY bro, means a lot that you are enjoying it!

 **Guest 1:** xD support Amour around the globe, am i rite? :^


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: I just wanted to say thanks for 50 followers! It really means a lot! Let's keep growing the story shall we?**

 **Let's continue our prologue: It seems that Ash and Serena are going to travel together to Lumiose, but along the way, the duo may run into surprises.**

 **This is based off an anime episode, but I made my own alterations, obviously Serena is there instead of Brock and Misty and they are in Kalos, not Kanto.**

 **Also, I got so many guesses in the egg's pokemon. For any of you guys that said Charmander… Well this chapter will prove you wrong, and the next will eliminate those who said Treecko (RIP lmao!). I am very surprised no one had guessed the egg despite there being a reference to the pokemon inside of it the first chapter LOL (actually, someone did…)! You will officially meet the pokemon inside the egg after the prologue… And yes, I did buff Ash's pokemon later on so don't think they can't take on legendaries or other pokemon that should out perform them. The pokemon in the egg is REALLY buffed in the moveset also, so be hype for that one!**

 **Hope you guys enjoy! And thanks again for 50!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own pokemon**

Chapter 7- Dreams and Abandoned

 **On route back to Lumiose City:**

After Ash and Serena parted ways with their other friends, the duo started walking towards Lumiose from where they came from. It was a nice route that had a beautiful pathway and a good amount of sunlight coming from the sky even though at this time, the sun was actually setting. It truly was a great day, and Serena was more than just happy because she was traveling with Ash. She, in fact, had wanted to finally tell Ash what she thought that her dream would be because ever since she traveled with Shaune, she had gotten some inspiration.

After some time walking, the duo spotted a pokemon floating around looking for some nectar in flowers, "Look a flabebe! It's so cute!" Serena exclaimed.

"Why don't you catch it?" Ash asked with a genuine voice.

"Are you sure I can do it?" Serena asked completely unsure in her confidence. She knew that she would probably want to try and catch it, but the fact that it would be her first catch was getting to her.

"Sure you can!" Ash replied with an encouraging smile. "Remember our catch phrase 'Never give up until it is over!'" Serena blushed a little at this one comment because it truly was a different Ash than the one she had reunited with back in Lumiose City and she was glad that Ash had finally been acting like when they first met in Pallet Town.

'Serena, just tell him that you like him' Serena thought. 'say what you want to say, and let the words fall out. I wanna see you be brave Serena!'

"You're right Ash, I guess that is the reason why I… I have to thank you for being a great friend!" Serena replied. 'FFS SERENA YOU JUST QUOTED A SONG THAT YOU LOVE!'

"Let's go Fennekin!" Serena shouted while plucking her only pokeball in her belt. The pokeball then opened up and from it came a flashing materializing orange fox that stood its ground for battle. Serena saw that Fennekin was ready and decided to go for the attack.. "Ember!"

"Fenne...KIN!" Fennekin shouted unleashing the small burst flames. The Flabebe noticed this and as she saw the flames, she returned an attack. The result ended with the flames being knocked back by a pink wind. Obviously Ash knew it was fairy wind from having some experience with some pokemon, but the fact that Serena had never even been involved in a battle meant that Serena did not know many of the moves that can be used.

"Fairy wind, be careful," Ash warned with a careful voice. Serena nodded at this, but she knew that she would need to attempt something different if she were to actually capture the flower pokemon.

"Fennekin spin to the left and use scratch!" Serena ordered while putting her two arms out in an elegant manner as another fairy wind was coming. This time, Fennekin dodged and hit Flabebe. The attack did damage as Flabebe started to fall slowly to the ground and then slumped on the grass very lightly. Serena got a pokeball and tossed it, "Go Pokeball!" She shouted as the pokeball made contact and sucked the Flabebe inside.

One shake…

Two shakes…

The pokeball shook three times before it signaled a successful capture. "Well done Serena!" Ash shouted as she gave Serena a toothy grin and a thumbs up.

"Pikapi Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed.

"T-thanks guys," Serena replied slightly blushing. She obviously had not expected that much praise from her crush, but it was something she could get used to.

"It was awesome, that spin dodge technique may be what I need to win some battles!" Ash replied as he thought back on the attack that Serena had just used and the way that the spin dodge technique may have actually worked very easily.

"Oh… thanks!" Serena said shyly as she tried to hide her blush.

After that, it became late which meant the two had to camp since the sun had started to set and the sky was now starting to turn all red, orange, and some blue from the night sky the opposite side of the sun, meaning the East. Ash was fine, but Serena was a little intimidated by the fact of camping. "Sleep out in the open?" she asked very nervously.

"Yea, we won't reach the nearest pokemon center for a bit, so we have to camp," Ash responded acting like he knows everything despite the fact that he had just started his journey that very day. "Here, let me show you, after living alone for years I can show you what to do."

"Ok," Serena replied still unsure about camping in the middle of a route that lead to the heart of Kalos.

Ash got some fire wood and then made an outline for a place where he could start a fire, "and this is why I need a fire type pokemon…" Ash sighed as he completely facepalmed for not even have thought of having a fire type.

"I have Fennekin!" Serena replied as she took out a pokeball from her belt and caused the orange fox to appear in front of the two. Serena ordered an ember so that the fire could start making Ash thankful that he had said yes to bringing Serena around. The fox then used ember to start a fire and cuddled with Serena like Pikachu was with Ash.

The sky slowly went from light blue to midnight blue, and with that, Serena decided to speak up through her shyness, "Wow, pokemon are so nice…" Serena started as Ash's attention shifted from the fire to the honey blonde next to him. " Wait… you knew Pikachu before it became your pokemon, how did you meet Pikachu, Ash?"

"It was a long story, but the short one goes like this…" Ash said with a unique tone with sadness from how sad the encounter was yet hopeful for what he and Pikachu compromised.

 **Flashback** :

 _"Just end me right here and now," Ash told himself as he slumped on a tree stump while reaching over to a stake that Ash had previously carved out. Ash was at the Santalune forest, once again completely alone and in desire to just heal himself, or what thought was healing himself. Ash wanted to just eject himself from all of this pain... Suddenly, a flock of Spearow saw Ash grab the piece of wood and thought that it was a menace so they charged Ash wanting to use peck on the raven haired boy._

 _A wild Pikachu saw Ash being attacked. This Pikachu saw the boy struggling and fired a thunderbolt at the spearow. The Spearow fled with fear while Pikachu ran up to Ash. Pikachu then rubbed his head on Ash's head to get Ash's attention. Ash looked up without major injuries and forced smile. Ash then pulled out his hand and petted the Pikachu._

 _"Thank you," Ash replied while petting the electric mouse, but Ash then turned his light smile into a frown. "You should get going, your family needs you."_

 _"Pika… Pikachu…" Pikachu said with a sad tone and hanging his head. Ash noticed this and slightly gasped as he probably knew that Pikachu did not have a family. It was an aura of sadness that radiated from Pikachu's presence that hit Ash like a train… Ash felt the connection and similarities he had with this small pokemon, and with that he grew inspired to get to know the mouse a little better._

 _"Let me guess, you don't have a family either," Ash inferred looking at the depressed Pikachu. Pikachu slowly nodded which completely proved Ash's theory correct and breaking the raven haired boy's heart. "Pikachu, I know what it's like…"_

 _Pikachu looked at Ash, both shed a tear feeling sympathy for one another. "Pika…" Pikachu said nuzzling with Ash._

 _"Pikachu, want to come with me? We can put our past behind us together and make it through this struggle," Ash proposed as he stuck his hand out as if to shake it with Pikachu and make some sort of compromise with the small pokemon._

 _"Pika… PIKA!" Pikachu shouted as he did not shake Ash's hand, but completely tackled Ash into a hug that ended up causing Ash to recoil back with Pikachu on his face. Pikachu then began to rub his cheeks with Ash's and the depressed boy felt a strong bond develop with the electricity that the two were exchanging in their cheeks._

 _Ash could not believe it, he was laughing, for once… he actually felt kind of… Happy? Pikachu was also expressing his happiness with tears of Joy._

 _Both pokemon and human were happy that fate had brought them together._

 **Flashback end:**

"That is how we became best friends," Ash said as he scratched behind Pikachu's ears.

"Pika!" Pikachu replied with a small bit of pleasure from the rubbing that Ash was giving him.

"That is so touching Ash, I see that you think of Pokemon as your friends, I think I should do the same, right Fennekin?" Serena said touched by the story and looking down at Fenneking, who Serena then held close to herself.

"Fenn!" Fennekin replied while hugging Serena back. Serena did feel the connection with her pokemon, and understanding that Ash and Pikachu both had some sort of similar past had helped them connect and stay strong for as long as the two can remember.

"So… Serena?" Ash started while turning his gaze from Pikachu to Serena.

"Yes Ash?"

"Have you found a dream yet?" Ash asked out of the blue surprising Serena since this was the topic that she had wanted to get to in the first place.

"I found a possibility, I have to try it first!" Serena winked.

"What is it?" Ash asked with curiosity and a pushing voice.

 **Serena's daydream:**

"To be your wife," Serena said with a smile.

 **Real time:**

"Showcases," Serena said shyly while playing around with her fingers. "I dream of making people smile with performances!"

"You will be great Serena! If you, Flabebe and Fennekin reach for it like Pikachu, Froakie, and I reach for ours, you can achieve it!" Ash said with a smile.

"Have you reached your dream yet?" Serena asked obviously knowing that the answer was probably 'no', but the fact is that she had always wanted to know what Ash wanted to be.

"Nope! But Pikachu and I dream of being Pokemon Masters!" Ash replied with a smile and looking down to his smiling electric rodent. "And I am confident we can win the Kalos league!"

"I think so too," Serena said unknowingly while putting her hands behind her head.

"Huh?"

"N-nothing!" Serena retaliated blushing furiously. Serena then looked at the night sky and saw that it really was dark. She then let out a yawn which told her that it was probably best if she went to get some shuteye. "Let's go to sleep it is late now."

"Ok Serena," Ash said. He found it weird of how Serena had acted previously, but he shrugged it off.

The duo then walked into their tent with their pokemon after that.

"Serena, are you feeling better about camping?" Ash asked from his sleeping bag which was right next to Serena's.

"Yes, a lot better thanks," Serena responded in her sleeping bag. She was a little nervous that she and Ash were going to be sharing a tent for the night, but the fact that Serena had done it before at the pokemon center told her that it was not really that much of a big deal. "Good night!"

"Good night Serena, sweet dreams," Ash stated completely unknowing of what he had just said.

'Did he just say…?' Serena thought as she drifted off.

'Did I just say…?' Ash thought as he fell asleep.

 **The next day:**

Serena yawned, she had just woken up from one of her best sleeps ever. She did not even know why she even was afraid of camping in the first place. When she looked around, she noticed Fennekin was on her side cuddling with her. Then, she looked over and her eyes went wide. Pikachu was cuddled with Ash, but that did not grab her attention. What did shock her was how she was next to Ash trying to cuddle with him.

Serena slowly got up trying not to wake up Ash, but Ash got up and rubbed his eyes as he said, "One of the best sleeps I have had in awhile… Oh Serena, you are awake?" Ash then noticed Serena's insecure expression and asked, "Serena are you ok? You look very confused about something…"

Serena blushed harder, but she covered it up so that Ash couldn't really see, "Really?" She knew she never did that, at least not involuntarily.

"Come on, let's eat breakfast and get back on the road!" Ash said as he got up and walked out of the tent.

"Pika!" Pikachu followed his trainer.

"Fenn Fennekin," Fennekin said to Serena with a small grin..

Serena blushed and sighed as she admitted her internal conflict, "Ok, ok, you caught me, just don't tell anyone!"

"Fenn!" Fennekin danced out of the tent obviously knowing the fact that Serena had some form of crush on Ash. Serena followed her out of the tent with hope that the little fox would not rat out Pikachu, but Pikachu probably already know. Still it did not affect her one bit since Ash would not understand pokemon speech.

After eating breakfast which Ash and Serena had bought before they had left from Santalune City and packing up, Serena returned Fennekin to her pokeball and the duo left in route back to Lumiose City.

Suddenly as the group was walking, a faint cry could be heard which caused Ash to stop in his tracks and Pikachu's ears to twitch in the direction it came from: "Char."

"Did you hear that?" Ash asked Serena who stopped at the sight of Ash's voice and slightly nodded thinking she had also heard the faint cry.

"Yea."

"Pika..." The attention was then turned to a big rock that was to the right of the route. It was obviously a large rock and from there came a large shadow that mimicked the sight of a strong pokemon. Ash and Serena slightly recoiled and looked up to the top of the rock to see what was causing the shadow: An orange pokemon that was lying there. Also, it was evident that there was a very small fire in whatever this pokemon was' tail.

The group approached a big rock and on top was a salamander pokemon, "A Charmander!" Ash said as he noticed something. "Huh? Look at this, it has a harness and in it there is a blue and black stone…" Ashw as curious as he saw the harness and instantly saw the DNA symbol on the harness. His eyes widened at the sight to which he looked down at his glove to see his stone glisten in the sunlight: It was obviously a mega stone.

"Wow, it must have a trainer then," Serena said.

"But… where is his trainer?" Ash asked making them both wonder. Ash then turned to Pikachu, "Pikachu can you talk with Charmander and made sure that Charmander is allright?"

"Pika!" Pikachu nodded as he jumped on top of the rock to converse with the salamander. "Pikachu pi pika?"

"Char charmander!" Charmander replied with a hopeful voice, but also with a hint of depression. To Ash and Serena, something did not add up just by listening to the salamander.

Pikachu then looked at Ash and explained the situation through hand motions and through acting, "Pika Pikachu Pika Pikachu Pi!"

"Wait are you saying that Charmander's trainer said he would come back to him?" Ash asked. Pikachu nodded slowly towards Ash to signal that Ash had guessed correctly.

Serena then noticed something and instantly pointed it out to Ash. "Wait, Ash, that flame in the tail, it is smaller than Trevor's Charmander…" Serena said with worry. Ash listened and understood that there was danger… It was his father that had taught him about the Kanto starters before too which meant that he saw the danger of the fire being put out. Of course, remembering this trait of the salamander pokemon caused Ash to remember the death that haunts him from the past.

"I don't think we should mess with it, it wants to be left alone," Ash said depressed before then forcing on a smile and looking at Charmander. "Charmander, if something happens I will come for you."

"Char…" Charmander replied ambivalent about the answer Ash just gave.

The duo then left the Charmander alone and went to the nearest pokemon center in the route for a lunch break. Though the thing was that… Ash still had Charmander in his head.

"Ash, are you ok?" Serena asked Ash as they ate lunch across from each other. Ash looked up at Serena with a little bit of a gasp as he remembered that Serena probably knows him better than anyone that has ever known him before. "You are not touching your food and I know you eat a lot."

"oh… nothing," Ash said while putting a hand on his cheek and sighing with a small smile to try and not worry Serena… But the honey blonde was not falling for it, she knew the real reason why Ash was acting like this.

"It's Charmander right?" Serena asked and Ash recoiled a little, but then Ash resigned to the fact and slightly nodded.

"Pikapi pikachu!" Pikachu cried trying to cheer his trainer up. Pikachu knew that Pokemon neglect was something inhumane and that it would most probably not be the case with Charmander.

"Pikachu is right, his trainer should come by later and pick him up!" Serena responded with a reassuring tone to Ash.

"I guess you are right," Ash said a little unconvinced as he started to eat. After the meal ended the duo went to leave the pokemon center, but just as they stepped out, it started thunderstorming really hard making our heroes go back in. "It really is ugly out there huh?"

"Yea, I hope Charmander is alright," Serena said in worry as she remembered that Charmander was all out in the open in the rain.

A new voice from another table was heard and Ash and Serena looked over to see a guy with a lot of pokeballs and a bunch of other people next to him talking. Ash and Serena eavesdropped. One of the guys had a lot of pokeballs with him and he had a pink shirt with a brown vest over it. He also had pale skin and dark eyes with blue hair that had a pair of aviator sunglasses on them.

"Hehe, these are my pokemon, what do you think?" The boy with the pokeballs asked a group of trainers that were around him.

Serena took one look and whispered to Ash, "I don't like the looks of that guy." Ash nodded agreeing. The fact that the boy was was crossing his arms with such a sassy attitude did spark something in Ash that he did not like.

"Wait Damian, didn't you have a Charmander?" one boy asked back at the original bragger who was the person known as Damian. Ash kept studying the guy with Serena, and he obviously did see something suspicious. His confirmations were proven true when Ash got triggered by what Damian had to say.

"I used too, it was given to me by professor Sycamore with that special blue stone, but that thing was so weak I left it by some dumb rock. I promised it I would return and the fool actually believed me," Damian said with pride while putting his arms up with an innocent pose… It was not so innocent to Ash though.

"Pika…" Pikachu grunted gathering dust.

"Charmander is out in the rain… this is bad," Serena started as Ash got up. Serena noticed Ash's clenched fists and gritted teeth and grew worried. "Ash, are you ok?"

Ash walked up to Damian. The latter looked at Ash confused until he felt Ash's hand hold him up by the collar. When Ash spoke up, his voice could kill anyone which made Damian slightly amused, "Go out there and get Charmander now!"

Serena was shocked at what she was seeing. Ash, the sweet boy she loved was threatening someone because of selflessness. She did not like the violence, but she saw how heroic Ash was being.

"Why would I care?" Damian replied as he shoved Ash's hand out of the way. Damian then smiled giving Ash a "come at me" signal, but Ash replied to his question first.

"If the flame on Charmander's tail goes out, it will die!" Ash exclaimed as he punched Damian in the jaw thus making Damian fall to the floor to which his goons went around Damian and tried to help him up. All the other trainers had sour looks on their faces. Ash then turned to Pikachu and declared. "Let's go Pikachu, we are going after Charmander!"

"Wait for me Ash!" Serena exclaimed as she grabbed a poncho and ran after Ash who had bolted out of the pokemon center with a blanket after the fire pokemon that must have been suffering out in the bare rain.

 **Charmander's rock:**

A bunch of beedrill saw the fire on Charmander's tail and started attacking him. Charmander's tail was about to go out because the leaf that the pokemon had been using to cover up the flame had been torn away. By the Beedrill. Charmander felt like he was about to meet his fate until he heard a familiar voice pierce the stormy air, "Pikachu use thunderbolt!"

Pikachu let out a cry and enveloped himself in electricity. The electricity then crackled through the air and shocked the Beedrill very easily which caused the bug types to flee in terror. Serena grabbed Charmander from the front while Ash did from the back.

"I will guide the way!" Serena exclaimed with a hint of urgency.

"I will make sure the tail stays lit!" Ash shouted as he looked through the blanket. He had forgotten to grab a poncho and was risking his health as he felt the rain hit his back continuously, but he needed to save the pokemon. He just needed to.

Both trainers started running back to the pokemon center and quickly arrived with great speed. When they arrived Nurse Joy was shocked to see the duo completely wet, but the fact that Charmander was in life threatening shape caused her to jump in terror. "Oh dear! Wigglytuff get the emergency materials and stretcher ready!"

Wigglytuff quickly brought out a stretcher and brought it out in front of the duo. Serena and Ash gently placed down Charmander in the stretcher as Nurse Joy and Wigglytuff got behind the stretcher to carry it into the ER. Ash watched in worry as Charmander was taken to the ER and both trainers with Pikachu sat down in the waiting area.

"Do you think he will be ok?" Ash asked his childhood friend with clenched fists while looking down.

"I think he will, we made a great team out there," Serena responded making Ash smile.

"You're right about that last one," Ash said with an appreciative tone because he might not have been able to do it without Serena.

It took two hours, but Nurse Joy came out of the clinic which made Ash, Serena and Pikachu look up at the nurse. Nurse Joy looked at the group and flashed a smile while announcing: "Charmander will make a full recovery!"

"Thanks Nurse Joy!" Ash and Serena replied with relieved expressions since the pokemon had been saved from the danger.

 **While sleeping:**

That night, Serena and Ash slept at the pokemon center. News about Charmander's full recovery was amazing for the duo as Ash could finally sleep in peace without having to know that Charmander was still at risk of dying.

Ash kept tossing and turning as to what he should do now. He had wanted to ask Charmander to be his pokemon for some time now, but it was obviously going to have to find out about Damian. Ash shook his head, he would find out in the morning if Charmander would rather stay with Ash or go back to Damian.

Ash then looked at his glove and saw the stone glisten a little in the darkness of the room of the pokemon center. Looking to his left he saw Serena sleeping on her own bed. "I really don't know how I could have done this without her…" Ash said to himself. Ash then fell back asleep while muttering, "Thank you Pikachu and Serena."

 **That Morning:**

Ash and Serena were there when Charmander came out of the ER. When the fire type was released, Charmander noticed Damian sitting on one of the couches of the pokemon center lobby and the Salamander went to him.

"Ash, here we go," Serena whispered as they watched from afar.

"Let's see what happens," Ash answered. It was obvious that the reunion could be heartbreaking, but Ash knew that Charmander could get through this.

With Charmander and Damian, Damian noticed the salamander and grew frustrated, "What do you want? Don't you see I don't want a weak pokemon like you? I would have never returned to that rock for you!"

Ash heard this and gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. It was obvious that Damian never wanted Charmander. Ash though, he loved the fire type, he wanted to be friends and have a new team mate, someone with the potential of being strong. Serena put a hand on Ash's shoulder and Ash slightly relaxed at the warmth that the hand gave. It was evident that staying strong was best, so that is what Ash did.

Charmander looked like he was hit by a million bullets. Damian got up and began to walk towards the sliding doors, but as Damian left, Charmander grew angry and rushed in front of Damian before scorching Damian in the head with a powerful flamethrower. Damian have Charmander one angry look before opening the door and walking past Charmander without saying anything with a small smirk. Seeing this, Charmander grew depressed and began to tear up.

Ash and Serena walked over to the fire type pokemon, but Serena stayed back as she knew Ash wanted to handle this one. Since Ash met Charmander, Serena saw how Ash wanted to give Charmander his love. Serena wanted this to happen and watched.

Ash got down to where he could be at level with Charmander and spoke up, "Charmander, I know it is hard to be rejected like that. Infact, my Pikachu and I also got rejected by our loved ones or we lost them."

"Char…" Charmander replied while shedding a couple of tears. Charmander understood Ash's words and he knew that his situation was probably one of the worst things that could ever happen to a pokemon. Charmander clenched his fists and then cursed himself for not being stronger… Until he heard what Ash had to say.

Ash continued, "Charmander, I think you are very amazing and I am willing to take you with me, so what do you say, want to come along?"

"Charmander!" Charmander shouted as he embraced Ash with tears of joy. Ash held out a pokeball which Charmander accepted as it shook only once proving to be a critical capture. Ash looked at the pokeball and smiled.

"Look Pikachu, we just caught… A Charmander!" Ash exclaimed making a pose. Ash looked at Serena who had a smile in her face and a hand above her heart. At the same time, Serena had her eyes shadowed over her fedora.

Ash noticed Serena's dark look and asked, "Serena, are you ok?"

"I'm better than ok Ash," Serena started as she looked up with glistening blue eyes. "I just witnessed what it means to find someone that truly cares about you, that will be willing to make it through a struggle with someone who also had a struggle."

"It was nothing Serena," Ash said as he pumped his fist. "Let's keep going to Lumiose now!"

"Let's go!" She exclaimed as she ran off in front of him and out of the sliding doors that lead to the outside.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Ash chased after his childhood friend.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted getting on Ash's shoulder.

A new chapter in Charmander's life had just begun.

 **A/N: Yay Charmander and with a blue stone… Hehe, this is getting good. The prologue may not last many more chapters, but it will get us to the basics for the rest of the journey to be enjoyable.**

 **Responding to Reviews:**

 **Cutesaralisa:** Sandile? Where did that come from? Serena will have an Alola Pokemon, not Ash xD! Anyways I did over spoil Ash's team, and even the pokemon in the egg, go look for it! I can tell you that it is not Charmander (for obvious reasons) and I do not think Treecko also makes the cut…

 **Thor94:** Again, you also are wrong on the egg ;). I did not see a reason to make Ash lose the first gym battle so I didn't really do that. I did want to institute just how good Ash is and just how this will not be the same as the anime.

 **Guest 1:** No need to make the egg Charmander at this point right? Also, Pikachu will be getting a cool new move, but not really the bond phenomenon. I want Pikachu to be strong with raw power and not much boosted power, that is why he is that powerful on his own. This cool new move will probably be cooler than even a Z move, so be expecting some awesome Pikachu performances in the fic.

 **Rst64tlc:** Let me reflect on your guesses. I like how you thought outside the box on these, but they are not right and here is why: Eevee is for someone else, Ash does not need another fire type, I feel like Honedge is a better opponent than ally for Ash, and Phantom… Is that the tree pokemon? I never would have thought of that one! xD. I am glad you enjoyed anyways!

 **Johnny Spectre:** Noooiiiiii… Noibat!

 **Guest 2:** Glad you enjoyed the chapter!


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Ok guys, we are nearing the end of the prologue, this is the last chapter in the prologue. The point of this chapter is to introduce the rest of Ash's team rounding him out to an even team of 6 (the egg counts).**

 **Now, I may have rushed the encounters of Ash getting a team, but the reason for this is because I don't want the prologue to last up to the second gym badge if anything.**

 **Now without further ado, let's continue!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 8- The Lumiose Bandits

 **Lumiose City:**

"Wow Ash we finally made it!" Serena exclaimed with joy. The duo were entering Lumiose and they had the time to enjoy the city again.

"True, right Pikachu?" Ash asked as he petted his electric mouse. Lumiose City was their main home for so long, so it was nice to see it again despite it being just a couple of days.

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed.

"Ash look, so many things we can do over here! Let's go to that store!" Serena shouted in excitement as she started to drag Ash to a clothes store that was near the entrance to the city.

"Uhhh… ok," Ash replied as he got dragged by the hand. He was not a fond of shopping, but he agreed anyways as he wanted to go looking around the city not as a homeless boy anymore.

"Ash look at these dresses, how do you think I would look in them?" Serena asked as she looked through the window in front of the store. Ash had to admit that Serena would probably look great on one of the dresses, the blue one in particular, but Ash just decided to open a can of worms instead.

"I don't know, you may look very nice in all of them!" Ash replied with a toothy grin as he looked at the honey blonde. Fact was, Ash did not feel like shopping, so he decided to play a little game with Serena as a little bit of fun to have with his childhood friend. Ash then thought of something that could give him some space. "Serena, let's play a game," Ash started as Serena turned to him with a perplexed expression. Ash then continued, "I go out and get you something you like and you get me something I would like, then we meet up at the cafe and exchange!"

Serena let the idea sit for a second, but then her face opened up with a smile, "Sounds like fun Ash, I am going to go to that store then!" Serena exclaimed as she walked off leaving Ash with Pikachu.

Ash sighed, "girls." Pikachu was on Ash's shoulder and was confused as to why he would go through with this. "Pikachu, do you have any idea of what she would like?" Ash just wanted to get something quick so that he would not have to worry about wasting time.

"Pika pikachu," Pikachu shook his head in defeat.

"I would have guessed it," then something grabbed Ash's attention as he walked into the same store that Serena was just looking in to. "Pokepuff maker… increase your pokemon's traits in cute, clever, cool, tough, and beauty," Ash muttered reading the machine's label on the box.

"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed in awe as he thought about all of the pokepuffs that could come out of the Pokepuff maker. Ash had to admit, it would help her with performing if she wanted to pursue that as her main track in her dream.

"Do you think she will love it?" Ash asked his partner slightly anxious about buying the Pokepuff maker.

"Pikapi pikachu!" Pikachu nodded yes with a large amount of desperation. He was dying to have a Pokepuff at this point.

"Ok!" Ash went to the cash register and bought the pokepuff maker, he then put it in a bag in order to make it a surprise for his childhood friend. Ash made sure that the bag was not see through so that it was a surprise for Serena.

Ash then walked out towards the restaurant they were meeting in, it was not far, just right across the street and the cafe symbol was visible on top of the restaurant. As Ash approached the cafe, he noticed two pokemon. It was hard to tell what it was, one was small and squishy while riding on top of what looked like a frog. The pokemon carried something in their arms and Ash quickly looked as they ran.

The two pokemon ran off into the outskirts of the city, just as officer Jenny came by. Ash in a motorcycle. Ash turned around and saw the same Officer Jenny that had been on his tail for years. Ash smiled as he saw this and Officer Jenny spoke up.

"Ash!" Jenny shouted in slight urgency as she looked around and turned back to Ash to ask,"Did you see which way those two pokemon went?"

"Ummm, that way," Ash pointed towards the clearing in which the two pokemon had disappeared to.

"Thanks, those pokemon really have learned from you haven't they," Jenny joked making Ash and Pikachu sweat drop. "See you around Ash."

"Bye!" Ash exclaimed as he saw Officer Jenny take off in the direction he pointed at with the motorcycle. "What was that all about Pikachu?"

"Pika…" Pikachu shrugged his shoulders as the duo continued to walk.

Ash decided to move on and made himself to the cafe in order to meet up with Serena and give her the gift. Ash was already starving Ashe could hear the grumbles of his own stomach haunting him. He was happy though, this time he would be able to eat at a civilized place without stealing.

"Ash!" Ash heard a feminine voice that obviously belonged to Serena as he walked into the Cafe. "I'm over here come on!" Serena signaled him over as she was sitting on a booth. It was probably meant for two people as Ash saw that many similar seats were for couples. Ash though, he shook off that fact as he walked over to the honey blonde.

"Hey Serena!" Ash said as he sat down. "Ready to eat?"

"Mhm, and look at this, I bought myself some new shoes!" Serena said as she showed off her new shoes to Ash. Next to her, there was a bag containing probably Ash's gift. Ash sneaked a glance, but it was obviously impossible to tell what it was from the distance.

After they both ordered, the duo started to eat while Pikachu sucked on a ketchup bottle that Ash ordered for the electric rodent. Ash knew Pikachu liked Ketchup ever since he first met him. The first day they were in Lumiose City, Pikachu managed to get himself in a hot dog stand and from that he had to rush his electric rodent to the pokemon center.

"Pikachu, be careful or you can get sick," Ash warned with gritted teeth and a lot of worry in his voice.

"Pika pika pikachu," Pikachu sweatdropped as he slowed down the pace of his sucking. Of course gulping it down too fast was fatal and Pikachu remembered his visit to the pokemon center because of that.

"Wow Ash you really care for Pikachu," Serena remarked with a smile as she looked at the duo.

"Of course I do, he cares for me just as much so I try to care for him just as much," Ash responded as he petted Pikachu's tail.

"Chaaaa!" the yellow mouse squealed in pleasure.

Just as the two finished their food and ordered dessert, the duo decided to exchange gifts.

"Serena, look what I got you," Ash said with a smile as he revealed the bag that he had that included the Pokepuff maker.

"What is it?" the girl asked in curiosity as she eyed the bag.

"I got you this to help you make pokepuffs so that you can perform at your very best!" Ash replied with a smile as he put the gift into Serena's hands.

Serena accepted the gift and put it in her bag with a smile and thanked Ash, "Awwww, thank you Ash!"

Ash at this moment felt a warm sensation he could not describe, but it felt good. Ash smiled at Serena as he saw her reach for his gift.

"Ash here, I got you this for you to wear," Serena described. She took out her bag and inside was a box with a light blue scarf. Ash immediately fell in love with the scarf as he opened the box and put the scarf on around his neck. The blue scarf dangled into the air at it's ends after going around Ash's neck and it was really soft and plush (Yes this is exactly like the scarf Alain wears, I will explain myself in the end).

"Serena, I love it! How do you think I look?" Ash asked as he petted the scarf. Pikachu smiled and did the same in curiosity and cooed anyhow fuzzy the material was.

Serena looked at Ash with dreamy eyes, Ash looked really amazing with the scarf. "You look awesome!" Serena exclaimed as she clenched her fists barely able to contain herself.

"Pika!" Pikachu approved of the look as he climbed on Ash's shoulder and exchanged electricity.

"Thank you guys, and thanks Serena, for the gift," Ash said with a genuine smile.

"Your welcome… Ooh Dessert is here!" Serena responded as the dessert came from the waiter. As the waiter put down the chocolate cake in front of Ash, Ash's mouth watered in awe seeing the chocolate beauty in front of him. Serena did not have that much of an intense reaction, but she did find it amazing that the cake was looking very fresh and well made.

"Awesome!" Ash shouted as he took a bite into his chocolate cake. Ash smiled and slumped into his seat as he experienced the flavor of the chocolate cake to the full potential. "So… good!" Ash shouted as he kept eating the cake. Serena and Pikachu sighed at this as they continued to eat at a slower pace.

Suddenly, after a couple of bites, the plates were snatched to Ash and Serena's surprise. Ash was about to take another bite when he bit down on air to then recoil in pain. Serena giggled at this, by then cocked her eyebrows seeing that both of the plates were… gone!

"Hey! What is the big idea!" Ash shouted as he noticed the two pokemon from before with the plates looking at Ash with smiles, then they both began to flee. "Come back here!". The pokemon left through the window. Ash then looked back at Serena and Pikachu with a serious face as he said: "Come on guys, I saw them cause trouble before."

"Right!" Serena agreed as the duo left the cafe to chase down the pokemon.

The pokemon led Ash, Serena and Pikachu away from the city and into a grassland. The pokemon that had stolen the food ran towards the center of the field. It seemed like a peculiar place to be since the pokemon seemed to be looking for something. Ash and Serena stayed back as they followed a line of bushes and quietly, but swiftly followed the frog and gooey pokemon.

Ash and Serena kept watching until the two pokemon reached more pokemon. They were a lot bigger and were long… Ash could say they looked like hoses, but it was obvious that they had a menacing and venomous look.

Ash and Serena used their pokedexes to show that there were three Seviper. The two other pokemon then went to the Seviper and gave them the food. Ash and Serena obviously saw that there was a large reason as to why the smaller pokemon were stealing the food, but it did not make sense as to what they were trying to get from this.

The two pokemon and the three Seviper conversed and then the two smaller pokemon, but after a while, Ash noticed that the Sevipers were getting agitated in the distance. Almost like if they were going to attack the two smaller pokemon.

From the distance, Ash and Serena noticed that the two smaller pokemon were motioning to small brown pokemon that was being guarded by the three Seviper. The pokedex identified it as an Eevee. The Eevee looked extremely terrified and from that it was stepping back in fear to only be menaced more by the three Seviper.

"Eevee, oh no!" Serena shouted wide eyed as she jumped out of the bushes to charge the Seviper. Ash flinched as he saw this, but the fact was that Serena looked more determined than ever. Unfortunately for the honey blonde, the Sevipers quickly noticed her.

Just as Serena was getting up, two of the Sevipers shot a fire beam from their mouths towards the smaller pokemon while the last one launched poisonous orbs at Serena. The frog used a barrage of seeds to counter while the squishy pokemon used a dragon breath. Serena covered her eyes and face as the orbs got nearer, but they barely missed by inches. Ash then caught back up to Serena and made sure that she was alright as he took out his Pokedex.

Ash and Serena scanned these pokemon, the green frog was a Treecko while the purple squishy form was a Goomy.

"Treecko and Goomy are trying to protect Eevee!" Ash exclaimed in realization as he looked at the Sevipers who now had more menacing postures as they kept firing he fire beams.

The bullet seed and dragon breath got overpowered by the two flamethrowers very easily causing them to get hit hard. Treecko and Goomy then fell back into the air and as Ash saw this, he went wide eyed. At that moment Ash sprinted over to the wounded pokemon and caught them in mid air.

"Are you two ok?" Ash asked the two pokemon in his arms. They both looked up slightly and saw Ash's face as they got down from Ash's arms to engage the Sevipers.

"Treecko!"

"Goo goomy!"

Serena ran for the Eevee, but all the Sevipers tried to use flamethrower on her. Serena braced for the impact that never came. Eevee had come and used a large turquoise shield to protect Serena, but the problems did not end there as a fire started enveloping around the grassland trapping the six living organisms.

"Ash!" Serena shouted in worry when Ash got hurt by the fire and recoiled in pain.

"Don't worry about me, I just have to keep Treecko and Goomy from the fire!" Ash exclaimed as he came in from behind the two pokemon he was motioning to and put himself over them as a shield.

Goomy and Treecko were shocked to see a trainer helping them, but the fire was getting closer and more dangerous for everyone.

"GOOOO MYYYY!" Goomy shouted as he then became enveloped in an aura and looked at the sky. Ash recoiled as he then saw rain clouds appear overhead and begin to drip water from the sky. The rain then started pouring and slowly began to extinguish the fire that was growing.

"Thanks Goomy!" Ash shouted as he looked at the blobby like pokemon.

"Tree cko cko cko!" Treecko shouted while reeling his head around and launching leaves like blades towards the Sevipers. The leaves collided and then the purple snake like pokemon began to fall to the ground in pain.

"Pikachu use thunderbolt!" Ash ordered as he put his arms out. Goomy used dragon breath, Treecko used bullet seed, and Eevee used swift. All the moves combined with thunderbolt to hurt the Seviper enough to make them flee for cover and Ash sighed as he saw Pikachu happily get right back on top of his shoulder.

After that, Ash looked at Goomy and Treecko who looked at him with eyes of gratitude and admiration. "You guys were awesome!" Ash told the small pokemon as he petted then.

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed as he pumped his fists.

Then the two pokemon looked at Ash and gave them a look Ash recognised all too well: "I want to be stronger, let's get stronger together!"

"So you guys want to come with me? What do you think Pikachu?" Ash asked as he turned to the electric rodent.

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed as Ash took out two pokeballs which the pokemon accepted. Both pokemon got sucked into the pokeballs and the pokeballs only shook once as it was a critical capture.

"ALRIGHT! I caught a Treecko and a Goomy!" Ash exclaimed as he put on a pose and put the two pokeballs into the air with a victory dance.

"Pi pikachu!"

"Congratulations Ash," Serena said with a smile. Just then Eevee rubbed against Serena's leg. Serena smiled and then kneeled down to the small fox to pet her, "Eevee, you want to come along with me?"

"Eevee!" she responded with a nod and a bright smile.

"Then welcome aboard!" Serena replied taking out a pokeball which Eevee accepted. Just like Ash's captures, this one was a critical capture and Serena found herself happy as she put the pokeball in her hands and shouted: "Alright! I caught an Eevee!"

"Looks like we all made new friends today!" Ash told his childhood friend.

The duo then headed off to Lumiose City. They went to the pokemon center and rested for the night.

Serena thought that night of the possibilities with Eevee on her team. She also thought about the impact Ash had in her life and how he was back to normal. It was heartwarming for her to know that the person that she met was back and that he would probably be able to find his dream… Possibly with her? Serena blushed thinking about that, but she smiled as no one was able to see her blush as she slept. Serena then turned on her bed and continued sleeping.

Ash could not stop admiring how cool he looked with the scarf. He also thanked his new pokemon for their bravery. Ash then thought about the pokemon he has caught and how he relates to them:

Pikachu lost his family when he was young and met Ash in order to live through the struggle.

Froakie abandoned his trainers because they never appreciated him the way they should have. Froakie left them just like Ash left his past as well. Froakie joined Ash because of his appreciation towards pokemon, towards Froakie.

Charmander had lost his trainer who thought he was weak. He had someone he looked up to turn on him like Ash's father had done. Charmander took an opportunity to find a new role model, and he did.

Goomy and Treecko both stole to survive and protect their loved ones. Both looked for brighter opportunities and put their bad deeds behind them.

The egg Ash had now was a lot in his thought. 'That egg will contain a pokemon that we will all love. One that I will make sure wont go through a struggle.' With that Ash fell asleep with a smile on his face.

 **The Next Morning:**

Ash and Serena were talking with officer Jenny near the exit of the city.

"So is the trouble gone for good?" Jenny asked as she looked at the two trainers.

"Yea! And we made new friends, there won't be any more trouble for now!" Ash replied with a bright smile.

"Thank you Ash and Serena," Jenny replied with gratitude as she slightly bowed her head at the two trainers.

"You are welcome!" Ash and Serena return in unison.

"Well, I better get going, goodbye!" Jenny exclaimed as she left in her motorcycle through the streets of Lumiose. After that, she made a left turn and disappeared from the view of the trainers.

"So, are you going to Cyllage City now?" Serena asked Ash as he adjusted his gloves.

"Yea and we are going to win our second badge!" Ash exclaimed as he pumped his fist at Serena.

"Pika pikachu!" Pikachu shouted with a similar expression on his face as his trainer.

Serena smiled as she looked down nervously. Finally finding the courage to speak, Serena did so: "Ash."

"What is it?" Ash asked in curiosity as he met the gaze of Serena's blue eyes.

"My first showcase will be soon in Coumarine City after the Pledging Tree Festival… I was wondering if we could meet up by that time," Serena said shyly as she put her hands behind her back.

"I would love to! I will be there for the Pledging Tree Festival and we can meet up then!" Ash replied. Ash then looked at the road ahead of him. "Well I have to go, I will see you later ok?"

"Alright," Serena started. "Goodbye and remember to never give up until the end!"

"Never will! See you later!"

Ash took a deep breath and walked onto the route leaving Serena in Lumiose City. She was going to meet up with Shauna later to practice performing.

Serena looked on as Ash disappeared in the route and sighed, "Thank you Ash, for everything. You may have had a rough past, but I will make sure you can put it behind you." Serena smiled. "I will always be there for you."

 **A/N: and that concludes our prologue, next chapter is a continuation of Chapter 1!**

 **Treecko in the egg? Nah fam! Someone else!**

 **Keep in mind: Next chapter we get to meet Ash's current team and the pokemon from the egg, so be hyped for that.**

 **Sorry if this chapter was a little sloppy. I just now notice as I am editing it how I lacked actions and details so as I was trying to make it like the more mature writer that I am right now, I did see myself being like such a novice… Though I do have to admit, this chapter alone was better than most chapters I wrote in The Fallen Trainer.**

 **For those of you wondering why I made Ash have the Alain scarf:**

 **-Canon Alain and this version of Ash have hardships that affect them emotionally.**

 **-Ash has a Charmander… with a pendant with a BLUE STONE. This one is just to symbolize Ash's power that he will have in the future ;)**

 **-I said before I was merging Ash and Alain didn't I? What a better way to do so than giving Ash the same scarf that Alain wears… It is probably my favorite article of clothing in the entire XY/XYZ series that anyone could have. Not only that, but this scarf will make Ash look so awesome in future battles, trust me...**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **The White Sage 2001:** Make that two characters now ;)

 **The legendary guy:** Sorry, but it won't be Nebby in the egg, in fact the pokemon in the egg was referenced in Ch1… You should know all of Ash's team after this chapter anyways xD! Glad you enjoyed the episode… And don't worry, Damian won't go away until he has had his beating.

 **Michmech:** Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it!

 **Guest 1:** Oh dear! I would rather see Ash kicking Damian in the balls though! ;)

 **Guest 2:** Glad you like it dude!

 **NinjaFang1331:** I am glad you are enjoying it… And Ash is dense like that, but at least a kind of awesome dense like him seeing Serena blush and be like: "Whatever, I gotta focus on something else for now." Don't worry though, Ash will eventually begin to gain realization. Also, I have kept the theme of XY/XYZ where Ash's pokemon evolve the moment they reach full potential with a purpose. Do you think this means that if Charmander does evolve he won't listen to Ash? I think he will be one of Ash's aces if he did! ;)

 **Rst64tlc:** Nope! Not Treecko, look closer at chapter one! Serena won't be getting Alola Vulpix though, I am giving her something just as adorable! Also not Snorlax Lol… Don't worry, next chapter we meet Ash's team and the pokemon in the egg!


	9. Chapter 9

**Ash's Dreams:**

 _Ash was surrounded in a field with flowers and a gentle breeze. He was looking around confused at what he was seeing. It was peaceful, but nice._

 _"Pikapi!" Ash heard as he turned around to see his Pikachu running over to him in a hurry and in tears. Suddenly, Ash noticed the entire ambient change into a forest. Pikachu ran into Ash's arms as Ash noticed poachers taking away lots of Pikachus from the forest into a machine._

 _"It's ok Pikachu," Ash said as he covered the mouse's eyes and ears. "I'm here I won't let anything happen to you."_

 _Ash then thought about being somewhere else, but instead of being transported, Ash noticed large plants and a white beam change the ambient in the forest to a destroyed landscape. Ash then noticed a Goodra and Sceptile taking berries from a tree that belonged to many other pokemon._

 _Ash recognized the Pokemon, "Sceptile? Goodra? What are you guys doing? You guys are better than this!"_

 _The Pokemon looked at Ash as if to attack him, but a large barrage of fire stopped them, it was a draconic fire dragon that Ash recognized as a Charizard, but it was a blue one though. This Charizard punched the ground and let off an attack they fired molten rocks and ash through the ground at intense momentum and caused a giant explosion that erupted on Ash._

 _"Urgh!" Ash winced in pain as the ambient changed. Ash noticed the scene change completely as there was nothing but a black fog and water that Ash felt that went up to his knees. No pokemon was around him._

 _Ash started to walk in confusion until he saw a something. A bipedal pokemon with a long tongue scarf that had for some reason a similar appearance to Ash as Ash noticed. This pokemon also had a large shuriken on his back. Ash reached out for this mysterious pokemon only for his hand to go through nothing but water that splashed on the water below._

 _Suddenly Ash turned to the sky and saw a gold light, a medium sized dragon with large ears cleared the fog and stood in front of Ash. The gold veil disappeared and Ash saw one of his trusty pokemon._

 _"Noivern," Ash said as he approached the pokemon and touched it._

 _"Vern!" Noivern replied as he took Ash's hand and the entire ambient started to glow._

 _Ash then understood what the symbolism was, "No painful past… Purity… That is what you are Noivern. The other pokemon and I raised you to not have the same burden."_

 _"Vern!" Noivern replied as the light then began to engulf Ash and Noivern._

 **At the tent:**

"(GASP!)" Ash awoke from his dream confused and covered in sweat. This startled Pikachu as the rodent woke up immediately.

"Pikapi?" Pikachu asked weakly as he heard his trainer wake up and Ash snuggled among Pikachu.

"It was just a dream Pikachu, only just a dream," Ash said as he closed his eyes and went back to sleep. Pikachu did the same next to his trainer of course.

As Ash drifted off he asked himself these questions: 'Why was there a Charizard that was black and blue? What do my pokemon's burdens mean for the future? Will Noivern's purity come in handy?...

What was that Pokemon that looked like me that had a giant shuriken on his back?'

 **A/N: So let's continue our journey with Ash. He has just defeated his father in battle once, but he has to make sure that he can be at his prime for the next battle. Right now though, he is going to take a detour to Glorio City for the master class in which Serena and Shauna are performing. Calem is there for Shauna and the others will be there too.**

 **How will things go for Ash now that he might run into someone again?**

 **This is the start of the REAL story. This is when the conflicts really start. I am hype so let's get into it!**

 **Oh yea… MERRY CHRISTMAS! And thanks for 5k+ views!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 9- Chance Encounter

 **Route to Glorio City:**

"Braixen will be good for doing this… while Sylveon can do that… What about Floette, where should I put her? Argh!" Serena gripped her head with frustration. "Maybe I should train with Popplio… I know that she is just a hatchling, but she will be great for the bubbles…"

Serena was thinking hard as she walked through the route. The route had a lot of flowers and trees on the side of the dirt path and eventually Serena came upon a large field with many Kalos flowers. All the Kalos flowers blossoming with the spring time. The breeze was soft and serena making her hair gently wave around.

Serena decided to have a little bit of time to train, "Braixen, Popplio, come on out!"

"Braix!"

"Pop!"

"Hey guys, I want to practice some moves," Serena started. "Popplio, I want you to make a bubble. Braixen, you use fire blast around the bubble while controlling it with psychic!"

"Popppp… LIOO!" Popplio made a large bubble and made it float into the sky. Braixen then shot a fire blast while using psychic to control the direction of fire blast and the way the bubble was enveloped.

"Great! Now combine flamethrower and water gun to make a collage of colors!" Serena commanded with a raised hand.

"Braixeeen!" Braixen shouted as she and Popplio made two elemental beams go around each other and popped the bubble making a lot of colors in a rainbow explosion and amazing effect.

Serena watched in awe. "This is going to be amazing, if we keep this up we will win the masterclass for sure!" Serena exclaimed. Her pokemon gave out a battle cry as they felt proud of themselves.

Suddenly...

 **"BOOOOOOOOOMMM!"** A huge explosion echoed from close proximity, in fact a giant white beam had completely leveled an entire portion of the forest and Serena could even see the damage from where she stood.

"What was that?" Serena asked as she recalled her pokemon back to their pokeballs. "Better go check it out!"

If there was one thing Serena learned from her inspiration: _he runs towards explosions not away from them._

 **Same time Glorio City:**

"So you finally made it Calem," Trevor patted his Charizard's back as his face got serious. "Did you hear about the giant explosion that happened yesterday night? It shook all of Kalos and everyone saw it, there was even this leaked footage of a Grovyle with a twig on his mouth that evolved into a Sceptile taking out a Darkrai! The trainer had like some sort of cool black attire and a scarf like the one Ash wears."

"Come on Trevor, I had to do some business with Ash, and about the explosion, I wonder who that trainer was," Calem responded. Calem was relieved that no one had identified Ash as the trainer that did the amazing battling. It was true, for the event, Ash changed to a black attire to not be recognised.

"Can you tell me what it was that you did with Ash?" Tierno asked as he recalled his Swanna.

"No, I can't right now," Calem replied with slight panic in his voice. Calem then looked up at the sky and saw what he wanted to see.

"TROPIUS!" A large flying type called as it landed in front of the boys.

"Hey boys! Glad to see you here!" Shauna exclaimed as she got down and recalled her Tropius.

"Hehe, time for the master class right?" Calem asked as the others met up with Shauna.

"Yea, let's hope Serena and Ash make it," Trevor replied. "The master class starts in a few days and they can't miss it… Serena for obvious reasons… and well Ash, I don't know why he comes to all the showcases, but he does."

Shauna and Calem tensed up at the mention of Ash and Serena. Evidently, both of them had left the other two behind.

"What's wrong?" Tierno asked the duo noticing the change in behavior in the brunette and jet black haired trainers.

"You see, I may have left Serena at Anistar yesterday," Shauna responded sheepishly as she face palmed herself.

"Wow, I did the same for Ash," Calem replied in embarrassment and crossed arms.

The other boys sighed. Trevor then spoke up though, "I think they will be fine, I mean Ash can take care of himself well… Also, I think they will make it in time, they have plenty of time to get here."

The others nodded their heads in agreement. It was obvious that there was plenty of time, even if conflict was among Ash and Serena.

 **Earlier that day on route to Glorio City:**

Ash had slept in his tent very soundly that night after changing back to his normal Kalos attire. He got up and ate some breakfast that he prepared with some eggs and bacon. He enjoyed eating eggs and bacon in the morning and of course he would always enjoy a Kanto Omelette, just like his mother used to make. That reminded him of his past and the good times he had with his mother (I am through with the question: "Can Ash cook? Wasn't he poor?..." Pretend Ash had bought the ingredients earlier and easily cooked the food in a fire ok? Ok… carry on!)

The day was beautiful, the breeze made his light blue scarf wave a little, but other than that the sun was out and it was beautiful. Ash had remembered passing an open field of flowers around five minutes away from where he was the previous day. He was is such a hurry to avoid the helicopters from the explosion that happened after facing his father.

"Pikachu," Ash started as he finished eating and cleaned up his plate.

"Pi?"

"Want to do some special training today?" Ash asked with a pumped fist.

"PIKACHU!" Pikachu cried with a determined face as the rodent got on Ash's shoulder and gathered electricity.

"That's the spirit!" Ash exclaimed as he looked back at Pikachu.

Ash gathered up his belongings, tent and sleeping bag and made his way into the forest with Pikachu. Once inside he found a clearing. The space was very large and spacious so it was perfect for training.

Ash then took out five pokeballs and threw them into the air, "I choose you!" he shouted as five pokemon appeared beside Pikachu.

"Charm!" A small bipedal salamander orange pokemon with a harness that harbored a blue stone cried. Ash knew him as Charmeleon. Charmeleon kept training hard after Ash caught him and both of them became a strong duo. Still, Charmeleon still had so much to learn when it came to his power.

"Tile!" Ash's most recently evolved pokemon that had a twig as a toothpick on his mouth cried. He was a strong and agile battler and Ash knew he could count on him specially after defeating the Darkrai.

"DRA!" Goodra… Ash's most tanky pokemon. Goodra came out as a large tank for Ash's team. Shortly after he caught him he evolved twice and was the star of the battle against Clemont the gym leader at Lumiose City. Ash could always count on this dragon that had a nice and kind personality.

"Vern!" Ash's youngest pokemon on his team grunted. Of course, loudest of them all. Ash found it amazing when he evolved and learned Boomburst as well as the moment when Noivern got the power to learn two more moves that many could call… powerful? Anyways, Ash found Noivern to be one of his most unpredictable pokemon.

"Froga!" This was the cry that Ash's most calm and sinister pokemon gave. Ash knew that Frogadier was a powerful fighter and the fact that he counted on him a lot. Ash was oblivious to the fact though, that Frogadier had started to develop and inner conflict with his relationship with Ash. Something that Ash had vaguely noticed.

"Alright guys, we are going to start some special training!" Ash exclaimed as all of his pokemon made a large battle cry. "Great, to start I am going to partner you guys up. Goodra and Noivern, go stand over there as you will be partners."

"Vern!"

"Dra!"

Both dragons got to where they needed to be and waited patiently conversing with each other.

"Ok, Charmeleon you will be with Sceptile and Pikachu team up with Frogadier," Ash explained as the pokemon walked to their respective positions. "You guys ready?"

"Pika!"

"Dier!"

"Charmeleon!"

"Tile Sceptile!"

"Noivern vern!"

"Goo!"

All pokemon shouted in unison.

"Great, Pikachu and Frogadier, I want you to work on sparing physically, Pikachu, use iron tail while Frogadier, you use cut!" Ash ordered. The pokemon got straight to work.

"Pika pika pika pika… PIKACHU!" Pikachu shouted as he landed an iron tail on the cut.

"Dier dier!" Frogadier also was sparing now. Iron tail versus Cut and neither pokemon backing down.

Ash smiled as he turned to the next pair, "Alright Charmeleon and Sceptile, I want you two to spar while using dragon claw. Sceptile I want you to teach Charmeleon how to pull the same speed with dragon claw like when you hit Darkrai yesterday. Also Charmeleon, I want you to teach Sceptile that spinning dragon claw technique that you used against Olympia."

"Charm Charmeleon!"

"Tile!" Sceptile said as he unleashed his claws at the same time that Charmeleon did. Both pokemon instantly stood next to each other as they taught each other the techniques.

"Goodra, I want to train your resistance, remember that the more you endure and the more energy you can hold, the stronger your bide. Noivern use your strongest Boomburst on Goodra while Goodra uses bide. Noivern I want you to work in increasing the power of your Boomburst. Goodra, each time, try to hold more and more energy until eventually you have to let it go. When you do, aim it straight at those trees so we can see the amount of power you have!" Ash explained to which the dragons nodded.

"NoiVVEEEEERRRNNNNNNN!" Noivern shouted as he launched his loud and soundwave boomburst and Goodra started to endure it gradually as the blood red aura of the bide started glowing very dark around the outline of his body.

Ash looked back towards Pikachu and Frogadier who were still sparing. He looked at Frogadier and noticed something about his shadow. It was larger than a Frogadier and had a tongue like scarf. This shadow also had a giant shuriken in the back. Suddenly, for a split second, Ash saw Pikachu right in front of him and what looked like his blue limb with a white kunai interacting with the iron tail.

Ash instantly looked away and shook his head, 'what was that? The shadow was a lot like the same pokemon that I saw on my dream last night...' Ash asked himself.

Ash then looked over at Sceptile and Charmeleon. Ash saw the two using strong moves on each other.

"Looking good Charmeleon and Sceptile… now Sceptile I want you to try and use frenzy plant while Charmeleon, you use dragon claw to slice through it," Ash explained.

"Tile!" Sceptile got to work by punching the ground and making large plants soar from the ground towards Charmeleon while Charmeleon broke the plant with dragon claw.

Ash then turned to his youngest member of the group Noivern, it had hatched into just a Noibat just after reaching Cyllage City and actually evolved fighting off a Fearow during the time going to Laverre City. Even though he was at a disadvantage, he pulled through a really good win against Sylveon and won the gym battle against the Laverre City Gym Leader.

Ash then looked at how Goodra was putting up against Noivern's Boomburst. It seemed like if the Bide was getting stronger and stronger. In fact the Bide looked like it would come out with more intensity than even at his fifth gym.

"Goo goodra," Goodra strained and Noivern stopped Boomburst with a panicked look on his face.

Everyone looked over at Goodra and noticed that his color of aura was a dark blood red, almost black.

"Goodra, quick aim for the forest and unleash the energy… EVERYONE TAKE COVER!" Ash exclaimed as he and his pokemon hid behind a giant tree.

Meanwhile with Goodra, the white beam started to appear in front of him, "GOOOOO DRAAAAAAAAAA!" Goodra shouted throwing out the beam that was at least a hundred times more powerful than any hyperbeam Ash had ever seen. The beam cut cleanly through the forest causing complete destruction and oblivion. The explosion then was massive, in fact massive enough that if it could rival that if any strong collision of moves.

When the smoke cleared Ash, Goodra and the other pokemon looked at the site of the bide and were motionless. The trees were completely gone and most of the grass did not exist anymore. There was also some logs that were on fire from the explosion on the ground.

"Goodra," Goodra said sheepishly while rubbing his gooey hand behind his head.

"I would not want to be in the receiving end of that," Ash simply said to which everyone else agreed. "Ok, guys, want to keep going?"

All of Ash's Pokemon let out a battle cry and went back to their partners, but Ash had to quickly tell a certain group something, "Ok, Goodra your bide is extremely powerful so we can work on something else. Goodra use rain dance and practice using thunder. Noivern you too, practice your hurricane towards the forest as well since rain dance increases the accuracy of those moves."

"Vern!"

"Dra!"

"I should have known it would be you Ash," A girl with short honey blonde hair walked up to Ash. Ash turned around at the sound of a new voice and smiled, he would always recognise the girl with short honey like hair, blue eyes, long red dress and of course the blue ribbon that he gave this certain girl under the pledging tree.

"Hey Serena, nice to see you again," Ash replied smiling with enthusiasm at seeing his childhood friend again.

"I see you are training Ash, let me guess this mess was caused by Goodra and Noivern?" Serena asked very sarcastically.

"Yea, I did order Goodra to make a bide and Noivern is making a hurricane right now," Ash signaled at the two training pokemon. At the point the debris on the ground was being circled around in the vortex of wind that was going on. To this Ash smirked at the sight of a new strategy.

Serena snickered as she looked at the other pokemon, "I see that Grovyle evolved!"

"Yea, he did yesterday, it was perfect timing too," Ash said. Ash then quickly tensed up knowing he spoke too much.

"Why?" Serena asked getting closer with a curious look in her face while she had her hands behind her back.

"It is a long story, I will tell you later," Ash said sheepishly attempting to change the subject. He really did not feel like talking about what happened the day before anyways.

'My, he's acting weird' Serena thought. 'Usually he would tell me everything'. Serena looked over at Pikachu and Frogadier and noticed that cut had turned into what looked like a blue blade of water and then turned back to a white blade. "Hey, Ash, about Frogadier…"

"Yea, I know, it is weird," Ash whispered. "I have to figure some things out." Ash then looked at Charmeleon and Sceptile and called out to them. "Ok, Charmeleon, Sceptile, come over here," Ash said to the two bipedal pokemon.

"Tile?"

"Meleon?"

"Nice to see you guys again," Serena said sweetly to which the other pokemon greeted gently.

"Charmeleon and Sceptile, I called you guys to take a break," Ash said as he recalled both pokemon. He then turned to the two dragons that stopped what they did and came to Ash. "Good work you two, return as well."

"Well, it seems that Pikachu and Frogadier are the last two here," Serena said.

"Yea, hey Frogadier, Pikachu take a break guys," Ash exclaimed.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted as he hugged Serena.

"Hey Pikachu," Serena said as she petted the rodent.

"Frogadier..?" Ash asked. The frog was still training. "Frogadier you can hurt yourself, return."

"Dier Frogadier," The frog said in a defeated tone.

"Come on, relax, we can train later, I promise," Ash said as he recalled his pokemon. Ash then looked at Frogadier's pokeball. 'Why has he been acting like this since the Anistar gym battle, was it what Olympia said about him?'

"Ash are you ok?" Serena asked. "I know you are worried for Frogadier, but I am sure that you can help him later."

"Thanks for understanding Serena," Ash replied with a smile. "Let's get going though, we cannot miss your master class!"

"Ok Ash," Serena replied as she started to walk with Ash in the direction of Glorio City.

"Serena, we should make it to the next town by tomorrow and Glorio City would be right past it," Ash said as he walked with Pikachu on his shoulder.

"That's great Ash, I am anxious for getting to the master class though," Serena responded. "I know Shauna is a good performer and that Paula will also be there." Serena spat the last name, she always grew jealous when Paula would hit on Ash.

"Serena, just a quick question, what is that small talk you and Paula always have?" Ash asked as the duo passed by a lake. "I mean I know it is about something important, but I mean…"

"Ash, don't worry about it, it is just some girl talk you won't understand," Serena replied with a blush. "Anyways, Ash who's ready for the league in your team?"

Ash sighed, "Honestly, I feel like my most prepared pokemon right now are Pikachu and Goodra. I want Noivern to perfect the move we have been working on, also Sceptile is a little off when it comes to his leaf storm and his frenzy plant can get stronger." Ash then thought of Charmeleon and Frogadier. "Charmeleon has still to prove to me he is ready while Frogadier…"

"What is wrong with Frogadier?" Serena asked.

"Lately, he has become weird, he is trying to train non stop and he gets weird shadows… His cut turns blue, for the slightest second and then sometimes…" Ash trailed off and Serena gave Ash a worried look. Ash did not want to reveal that he could see through Frogadier's eyes and got saved by the bell. "Look a pokemon center! Let's turn in for the day!"

"Alright Ash," Serena said as the two went to stay at the pokemon center for the night.

 **Somewhere hidden:**

"Oh Ash Ketchum, just wait, you will fall to me when I strike," a strong voice said as this man petted a Pyroar. "You will pay for what you did to my base."

 **A/N: So that was a dark ending. I know it was kind of a filler, but I wanted to introduce some things that you can infer by now. There was major foreshadowing here.**

 **Have some happy holidays! I know you guys are probably enjoying your time with family and friends, but here… Take this chapter as a gift from me to you… and Noivern will be the miracle that hatched from the egg ;)!**

 **Also, I made a Twitter! NS5Playz come and check it out even though it is not much RN lol!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **The legendary guy:** Thanks for understanding the rushing I had to do for the prologue xD! Also, Noibat is already a Noivern and fricking OP! Yes, scarfed Ash is cool: Imagine the scenes where Alain gets involved in a huge shockwave and his scarf waves, then put Ash's face and jacket in the scene and you got scarfed Ash! At this point I guarantee you an XY gang to come, but I won't be going all "Clemontic gear on!" For everything. So yes, expect our beloved inventor and her sister… But expect someone else too ;)... As for Alola characters: This chapter answered that question, but there will be a dark twist, so be hyped for that! Expect more Alola representation AFTER the Snowbelle Arc.

 **Ninjafang1331:** I suppose you shouted: "NOIVEEEEEEERRRRN!" At the screen xD! Glad you enjoyed the chapter!

 **Roger0326:** Roger that!

 **Joda-Eragosson:** Correction: Noivern

 **Rst64tlc:** Lol, it's alright. Most people don't consider Noivern in Ash's ultimate team… But I do… come on, this is Ash's first legitimate dragon in any series. Like, a flying dragon type. Also, wait a bit as Damian will get what he deserves soon enough!

 **Guest 1:** I wish you a merry Christmas as well! Glad you enjoyed!


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: So yes, last chapter may have just been like a filler to show Ash's pokemon and their current state. Among Ash's team there will be conflict and you can probably guess what it will be. We will touch on that this chapter.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 10- The Birth of the Night Fury!

 **Pokemon Center Room:**

"Pika...CHUUUUUUU!"

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Ash shrieked in pain. It was morning now and he had gone to sleep wanting to stay up late. Sadly, he knew he had to get up.

"Morning sleepy head!" Serena said with a cheerful voice as she stood above Ash's bed."I made us breakfast!"

"Thanks Serena," Ash replied as he went to the pokemon center lobby to eat with Serena. "So Serena, what is it that you made?"

"See for yourself," Serena smiled as she served Ash a Kanto Omelette. Ash went a little wide eyed at noticing the familiar food, but he decided to leave most of his judging of the food on how well it tasted.

Ash took one bite and instantly fell in love as he turned to the honey blonde, "Serena this is amazing! Since when did you know how to cook dishes from Kanto?" Ash asked as he stuffed his face with food.

"I learned from a cookbook, I am glad you like it!" Serena replied with a happy smile. At the same time she looked away and pumped her fist as she thought: 'Reel him in Serena, you can do it.'

"Are you kidding? I LOVE it!" Ash said as he gulped down the rest of the food faster than a fish can fully gulp one bite of fish food.

'Of course he loves the food, but not the person that made it' Serena sighed as she thought this while finishing her own food.

After the duo finished, they hit the road on road go Glorio City.

"Serena, how much until we reach the next landmark?" Ash asked the honey blonde as he and Pikachu walked at the same pace as Serena. The young performer took out her tablet and searched for the landmark and then she found it, but at the same time she noticed that there was a large obstacle in the way.

"Not too far, we have to go through a large valley with jagged rocks though so it may get a little dangerous," Serena replied with a slight panic in her voice. Unfortunately for the duo, they started to feel some rain drops and then suddenly it began to pour making them have to put their back packs over their heads.

"Argh! We gotta find shelter!" Ash exclaimed with panic as he looked around the route. All he saw was a lot of mountains near the route, but other than that, it was a very clear area.

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed while gathering electricity on his cheeks.

"I think I may have found a cave!" Serena shouted with the tablet as she ran towards a mountain side near the route. Ash followed and sure enough, there was a cave on the side of the mountain.

The duo and Pikachu ran into the cave while panting relieved they got out of the rain, but that was not what threatened the group anymore: it was the cold of being damp. Ash noticed Serena was shaking violently and decided to help the blue eyed girl.

"Here Serena," Ash said as he took out Charmeleon from his pokeball. "Let's stick close to Charmeleon to get warm."

"Thanks Ash," Serena responded as Charmeleon heated up both Ash and Serena. Suddenly, from Ash's side, a lot of flashes of light appeared that startled the two humans in the cave.

"Tile!"

"Vern!"

"Goodra!"

"Froga!"

All the Pokemon chanted their respective calls as they stood by Ash and Serena to be warm with them.

Pikachu cuddled up with Ash specifically though as Noivern spread his wings over the duo to keep them warm. Frogadier also stood under Noivern's wings and Sceptile stood near Charmeleon's flame. Goodra though, he liked the cold weather so he stayed a little separated from the group. Despite this, everyone still enjoyed the presence of the large dragon. "Pikaaaaaaa," Pikachu cooed as ash petted him.

Suddenly, a Braixen, Floette, Sylveon and Popplio got out of their pokeballs to join the large group. They all swarmed Serena, who was next to Ash and his pokemon and Braixen helped out Charmeleon in generating heat.

"Ash, this is so nice," Serena said as she cuddled with her own pokemon.

"I agree, just like one big family," Ash affirmed with a bright smile. Ash was happy he was able to spend this moment with all of his pokemon. He was grateful to have them on his side. Serena then took a look outside and noticed that the rain had stopped so she turned to the raven haired trainer.

"Ash, the rain stopped, I think it is safe to go out now," Serena said with a smile.

"I see, ok everyone return!" Ash said returning everyone but Charmeleon and Pikachu. "Charmeleon I am going to need you to light up the tunnel for us."

"Meleon!" The salamander replied as he pumped his fist at Ash. Charmeleon was one of Ash's most battle hungry and burning pokemon, obviously being a fire type has its advantages to confidence according to Ash's reasoning.

Serena recalled her pokemon, but as they walked out of the cave, there was a huge conflict that started when a large fire beam with five prongs was headed for the duo coming out of the cave.

"Pika...CHUUUU!" Pikachu shouted as he shot out a beam of crackling electricity to deflect an incoming fire blast. The two moves collided and then turned into a large explosion that made a cloud a smoke in front of the mouth of the cave.

"Serena, run back into the cave!" Ash shouted as the duo and the two pokemon ran back in. Our heroes kept panting since there was a lot of running and urgency. "Serena, let's go that way, there may be another way out."

"Ok Ash," Serena said with a lot of panic as the duo started walking the other way of the cave. The cave was really dark, but Charmeleon kept the light going. Every so often the duo would run into a Noibat thus giving Ash an idea.

"Noivern I need you!" Ash said while throwing out a pokeball which materialized into the sound wave dragon. Noivern appeared in front of the duo and turned to Ash with a questioning look. "Use your echo location so we can find a way out," Ash told the flying and dragon type pokemon.

Every time the group ran into a fork on the cave, Noivern would easily find a way to guide Ash and Serena the right way. The duo found themselves very fortunate for their advantage throughout the cave because of this.

"Ash look," Serena started as she pointed towards something in the distance. It was light… It could easily be an exit. "A way out!" Serena started running with Ash and the other pokemon behind them.

"Serena be careful!"

 **Somewhere near the cave:**

"Ok Lysandre, we have control over Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres," A man said into a holo caster. This man was fat and had some red glasses. He was a scientist as well and everyone respected him on Team Flare.

"Good Xerosic, now make sure that we have a visual for our plans," Lysandre replied as the image on screen left.

Suddenly, a grunt came up to Xerosic. "Xerosic sir, we have a problem," the grunt said nervously while shaking.

"What is it this time," Xerosic spat with crossed arms. Xerosic had no time to waste and it was obvious that he wanted to go through with his own mission at this point.

The man shuddered, "We have a breach, I was easily defeated and we have to attack with all costs using the legendary pokemon."

"Who do we attack?" Xerosic raised an eyebrow and a small facepalm.

"The teenagers that are coming out of that cave right now," the grunt replied as he pointed to the cave. Two teenagers with three pokemon near them came out. Ready to battle.

Xerosic gasped as he saw this and gritted his teeth. With that, Xerosic went to a microphone and began to speak to the other grunts.

 **At the cave:**

Ash and Serena had been cut off by three grunts, "Houndoom use flamethrower!" they shouted with pumped fists.

"Noivern use boomburst now!" Ash retaliated while putting his arms out.

"NoiVERRRN!" Noivern shouted as he took out all three Houndooms in one hit of the tornadic beam. The Houndoom all slumped to the ground with an unconscious expression.

"Houndoom return!" The grunts shouted as they recalled the Houndoom. Then all three took out another pokeball. "Drapion let's go!" they all shouted as they released large scorpion like pokemon in front of the duo. They made a large cry, but Ash did not flinch as he stood his ground.

"Ash be careful as they are poison types," Serena reminded with a panicked voice.

"Right! Noivern immobilize them with supersonic," Ash exclaimed. "Charmeleon take that chance to then use thunder punch on these guys!"

"Noi VERRRRN!"

"Charmmmm meleon!"

The pokemon used their attacks skillfully hitting their targets with ease. The grunts looked baffled and returned their Drapion. After that they left in a hurry leaving Serena and Ash alone.

"Noivern, return!" Ash said as he recalled Noivern.

"Ash, why did you recall him?" Serena asked in a perplexed tone. She did not understand why Ash would have wanted to recall the pokemon despite being able to one shot all the Houndoom.

"He is still not strong enough to take hits, that is why I am having him train sky attack, but I cannot let him battle a lot consecutively, remember he technically is still a baby," Ash explained as the duo walked towards the end of the cave.

"ASH LOOK OUT!" Serena shouted in urgency as a she saw a fire blast come their way from the outside of the cave.

"Charmeleon use dragon claw!" Ash retaliated knowing that there was barely any time to even dodge the attack.

"Charmeleon!" Charmeleon shouted as he got in the way of the fire blast and took the damage with the green claws thus leaving Charmeleon unharmed.

"Now's our chance, we have to run!" Ash shouted to Serena as he started to drag her outside of the mouth of the cave. They looked at where they were and they were on top of a cliff to the left and there was a mountain to the right. The cliff lead go a bunch of jagged rocks which looked like a dangerous territory.

Ash then noticed a bunch more team Flare grunts looking over at then from a distance and near them were three pokemon that were launching attacks. Ash narrowed his eyes and noticed that the attacks were directed at him and Serena.

"Ash, those legendary pokemon are being controlled like the pokemon at Lumiose City when we started our journey!" Serena remarked as she looked at the collars that were causing the three legendary birds to be on a rampage

"Pika...CHUUUU!" Pikachu launched a crackling beam at the team Flare grunts and landed a hit on the computer that was managing all of the controls on Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres, but that just made things worse as when the computer exploded, the team Flare grunts began to focus on he duo… and the legendary pokemon lost control.

"SQUAAAKKK!" All three Pokemon yelled launching an ice beam, thunder and fire blast at our duo. Ash and Serena looked as the attack came and gasped knowing there was no possible way to avoid getting hit: unless something took the hit instead.

"Charmeleon!" Charmeleon looked at the scene in horror and saw how it could be devastating.

"PIKAPI!"

"CHARMELEON!" Ash and Serena shouted in panic as they watched the fire lizard jump into the air with a dragon claw to attempt and take the three elemental beams at the same time.

 **Charmeleon POV:**

I have to save Ash, Serena and Pikachu, it does not matter if I die!

I get in the way of the three attacks and unleash my dragon claw. I know that I have to stay as defensive as possible.

The three attacks collide and I instantly feel the searing pain go through me. I feel like I would drop any second, but I have to stay strong.

I won't fail you Ash! I won't fail the one that took me when no one else would. I won't fail the one that made me this strong.

I WON'T GIVE UP EVER!

I ignore the pain and face it with all my might.

"CHARMELEON!" I shout in pain.

Suddenly, I feel a fire start up inside of me, like if I can make myself stronger. I feel myself gaining a pair of wings and stronger claws. Meanwhile, my pendant glows as well.

What is happening to me? LET'S GO!

Normal POV:

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted in amazement watched the white glowing light that was envelopping Charmeleon. It was evident that Charmeleon was also growing bigger, and from the looks of it, more powerful.

"Is Charmeleon…" Serena started.

"He's evolving, awesome!" Ash exclaimed as a Charizard appeared before him. Charizard swooshed at all speed and dodged a thunder charged beam from Zapdos and then landed a strong dragon claw on the amazed Articuno. "He's so fast!" Ash said as he watched in awe at the fire draconic dragon.

"GRAUWWW!" Charizard roared as he looked at Ash and signaled his stone with one arm and pumping his fist with the other.

"Ash, your glove, it's glowing!" Serena said in excitement knowing that this meant.

"... Charizard, let's unlock this, beyond evolution… MEGA EVOLVE!" Ash shouted while putting his index and middle finger on the keystone. Bright light showed as the prongs from the mega stone and keystone began to interact with each other.

Charizard started to glow white, his wings changed shape and there was fire coming out through Charizard's mouth on both sides and the coloration changed to black and blue… Mega Charizard X.

"Charizard use flamethrower!" Ash shouted with excitement, but instead of a jet of flames, Charizard turned blue on fire and charged Zapdos hitting him square hard on the chest thus making the electric and flying type recoil. "No way! He learned Flare Blitz!"

"GRUAAAAWWW!" Charizard shouted as he grabbed Zapdos. Zapdos started struggling to get out so it kept using thunder. To Charizard, his new typing made the move tickle him. "ROAAAAARRR!" Charizard shouted as he nose dived and threw Zapdos on Team Flare's set up causing a large explosion.

Ash stood there in awe, "Charizard also learned seismic toss, awesome!... Look out Charizard, use dragon claw behind you!" Charizard unleashed his green claws and turned around in time to slash Moltres and make it recoiled and hit one of the jagged rocks. The dragon claw was the size that Ash had never seen before… two times larger than usual. "Tough claws, I have to love that ability," Ash smirked while looking at the dragon he was commanding.

"Ash, we need to remove the collars!" Serena ordered with a great amount of stress while looking at the raven haired trainer. "Braixen use psychic and stop Moltres in his tracks!"

Serena unleashed Braixen from her pokeball and the fire and psychic type took out her wand. Her wand waved and made Moltres glow blue on the outlines.

"Charizard use dragon claw on the collar!" Ash ordered with a pumped fist. Charizard was quick to do his work and slashed off the collar making Ash celebrate as Moltres landed to the ground exhausted, but something else caught Ash's attention from the side.

"PIKA!" Pikachu shouted in worry as Ash then noticed that Serena was going to be hit by an ice beam from Articuno who was not being targeted by anyone.

"SERENA LOOK OUT!" Ash shouted as a flash of light appeared beside Ash surprising the raven haired trainer.

"FROGA DIEERRRRRR!" Frogadier cried in pain as he took the entire ice beam to the chest and fell back to the ground in front of Ash and a surprised Serena.

"No Frogadier!" Ash grunted as something huge hit him... Ash grabbed his chest feeling a cold and strong pain through him like if he was hit with ice beam instead of the water frog. Ash then took out a pokeball and aimed it at Frogadier. 'What was that? Why did I feel pain?' "Frogadier return now! You are too hurt!"

"Dier," Frogadier winced in pain as he returned to his pokeball. There was quite dissatisfaction on the frog's face and Ash saw it. He felt guilty having to return Frogadier, but there was no way he would allow Frogadier to get hurt like that.

"Ash, get Zapdos now!" Serena exclaimed as she had frozen the lightning bird with Braixen's psychic.

"Pikachu use iron tail!" Ash ordered while putting his hand out. Ash then pumped his fist. "Charizard charge Zapdos and use thunderpunch!"

"Pika pika pika pika… KAPI!" Pikachu shouted as he slashed and broke Articuno's collar thus making Articuno fall to the ground exhausted like Moltres.

Meanwhile, Charizard had his fist crackling. "Grrruuuuaaaawww!" Charizard roared as he got the hit right on the chest of the electric bird. Zapdos fell over wincing in pain and with smoke coming out of its wings which gave Ash the opportunity he needed.

"Now Charizard dragon claw!" Ash shouted. Charizard did what he had to do and slashed the collar freeing Zapdos. "Good job Charizard," Ash praised as his pokemon as the fire and dragon type landed next to Ash.

"Ash, I think it is time we left," Serena said in urgency.

"Pika…" Pikachu agreed panting.

Out in the distance, the Team Flare grunts were running over to our duo with Drapions and Bisharps behind them. They were ready to cause damage to them and Ash knew that the honey blonde was right about leaving.

"Charizard, can you let us ride you?" Ash asked with slight panic.

"Gruaw!" Charizard nodded with a pumped fist.

"Braixen return!" Serena called out as she recalled her fire fox.

"Come on Serena," Ash said as he stuck his hand out. Pikachu had gotten on Charizard's head. They were ready to take off. Serena grabbed Ash's hand and sat behind him.

The Mega Charizard X took off just as the grunts arrived at the scene. The grunts attempted to land toxics and thunder waves to slow the duo down, but Charizard easily dodged them all. Charizard then flew out of sight and up into the clouds.

 **Ash POV:**

Here I was, I have a electrical rodent on my shoulder and a girl behind me. I am on a black and blue dragon with an amazing appearance and power.

"Serena, how do you like how Charizard looks?" I asked the girl behind me with a slight chuckle thinking about how close the situation we just came out of was.

"He looks really cool, I like the way his blue flames resemble your blue scarf," Serena told me with a smile which I could not see, but I could somehow feel.

"My scarf? Wow, I guess trainer and pokemon do look alike!" I replied with a slight laugh.

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed.

The view is amazing, I could see all of Kalos from here and the clouds below me look so beautiful. I enjoyed the scenery and I could tell Serena does too as she takes in the view. I could tell she wanted to be closer to me, but obviously she was a bit nervous. I wished she was a little more straightforward, but it is her shy nature… I know her too well, don't I?

"Charizard, I see a pokemon center, let's go down there," I told my fire friend.

"Gruaw!" Charizard responds as he starts to descend.

 **Glorio City (normal pov):**

"So Calem, what gym are you challenging next?" Shauna asked as the duo walked towards the hotel.

"I only have to go to the Snowbelle gym," Calem replied. "I know Trevor and Tierno have their badge and I am not surprised, they are strong battlers and me and Ash don't want to fall behind."

Calem and Shauna made a turn and notice that there are so many performers ready for the masterclass.

"Calem, I hope Serena and Ash are fine," Shauna said.

"They will be, they should make it soon," Calem assured. The duo went back to the hotel, it was late and they needed to go to sleep.

 **Pokemon Center:**

Serena and Pikachu had gone to sleep. Ash has been woken up all of the sudden by a weird sound from inside his room. Ash got up and went to check on his pokeballs when he noticed one was empty.

"Frogadier?" Ash muttered to himself as he put on his scarf and left the room. Ash went outside to the practice field and found him. He was using cut against a decoy made of frubbles. "Frogadier, what are you doing up so late?"

"Dier dier dier!" Frogadier exclaimed as he kept using cut trying to ignore Ash.

Ash sat down watching Frogadier train and said, "You want to be stronger don't you?"

Frogadier flinched and looked at Ash. Frogadier then made his kunais vanish into thin air. Frogadier nodded and said, "Dier."

Ash signaled for the frog to sit next to him. The frog was hesitant at first, but did it. "Look, I can see why this bothers you, Charizard just evolved and he seems strong… so you think you need to be the strongest to satisfy me," Ash said with a bit of a sigh.

Frogadier looked down and nodded a little hesitantly.

"Don't be discouraged, I know we will become stronger together," Ash said with a smile while looking at the water frog. "Frogadier, I promise you that when we reach Snowbelle you will be stronger than ever!" Frogadier nodded his head and stuck out his hand. Ash noticed he wanted to make the promise official so he shook it while saying, "We will reach these new heights together."

 **A/N: So Frogadier may be a little frustrated with how he is developing. This is how things will get real after some time.**

 **Tell me how things are going so far!**

 **I do have to apologize if this chapter seemed a little… idk: shitty? Is that the right word. I had not used much time to edit it since it was working on some Kalos League Chapters for the later Arcs lol! Yes, I like writing battles, deal with that :P.**

 **Next chapter will be the last chapter I will have up in 2016. Then when 2017 kicks off, we will start off with chapter 12… Which is when things start to get very plot heavy. By the way, just a fair warning. I know you guys are expecting the masterclass next chapter, next chapter is more of a filler, but keep in mind that the masterclass will be EPIC! OK, another fair warning: One of the masterclass chapters might have violence and an extremely dark plot to it… So, either be hyped for that, or be freaking out because I don't know how you guys reacted to my other dark chapters. So yes, the storm is coming right back to our characters!**

 **Hope you guys enjoyed!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **AmourshippingFan: glad you enjoyed it! And yes, I am glad they are traveling to the Masterclass Tripokalon together… oh, and about Charizard, I like the way the scarf matches. I also think that someone will have a blue tongue as well to make it match his trainer's scarf… wait, what?**

 **Rst64tlc: Hope you enjoyed the holidays! New year's Eve is coming up soon, and I hope you enjoy it!**

 **Guest 1: haha, glad you liked it!**

 **Roger0326: Roger that buddy ;)**

 **NinjaFang1331: Thanks! Glad you enjoyed!**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: We left off with Charizard evolving after a crisis with team flare. Obviously, Ash and Serena fled the scene before more trouble became a problem for them. We also learned how Frogadier is very upset by not feeling that he is as strong as he can be, and he has every right to be upset. Just so you know this will play in an important role later.**

 **Also, knowing this is Ash that is also taking in the role as Alain, this will be probably very interesting.**

 **Also, Serena is taking the role of Mairin in this (yes she does not have a Chespin, but just wait and see.)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 11- Dragon Rivals

 **The next morning at the Pokemon Center:**

"Ash, we can make it today if we hurry!" Serena exclaimed in happiness.

"Yea," Ash then looked at his shoulder. "Ready Pikachu?"

"Pika!" Pikachu squealed on Ash's shoulder. Everyone was ready for the master class. Serena was preparing her routine earlier that morning. Ash was also training for his next gym battle. Frogadier had some amazing performance among Ash's pokemon, he was able to spar against Sceptile and Charizard and skillfully be toe to toe with them both.

"I think Frogadier is a lot happier today," Ash told Serena. "He has been performing with amazing power in battles lately!"

"I know Ash!" Serena said. "I think I also learned about a cool new idea for a move I could use in the showcase!"

"Awesome!" Ash replied while putting on his backpack. Both trainers left the pokemon center with enthusiasm. Pikachu was riding on Ash's shoulder enjoying the view. "I hope we can meet some strong trainers on the way Serena!"

"I hope so too, so that you can win that last gym battle," Serena winked.

"Hehe, I know Serena… By the way, why is it that Popplio does not appear in my pokedex?" Ash asked his companion as the duo walked through a dirt road in between trees. It was evident that they would eventually come across a landmark that would point them to Glorio City.

"Actually, Popplio is a starter from Alola, so that means the Pokedex would need to update in order for Popplio to appear," Serena explained.

"Alola, that is another region right?" Ash asked. Serena nodded her head. Ash grew psyched by all of the pokemon that could appear in Alola.

After a few hours of walking, Ash and Serena came across a large field. It had an open clearing and obviously was a great place to take a break.

"Serena, let's take a break here!" Ash exclaimed as he sat on a rock.

"I agree," Serena said as she opened up her backpack to get out a comb. She then revealed her Sylveon and started to comb it. "Sylveon, how are you feeling today?"

"Veon!" Sylveon replied with a smile.

"I'm glad," Serena smiled. Ash looked at her with happiness. He watched as Serena cared so much for her pokemon and was impressed.

"Serena, are you scared for the masterclass?" Ash asked.

"I… maybe a bit, I mean I will have many rivals there… Like Shauna and in the end I would have to battle Aria for the title. I don't know if I can win, but I won't give up!" Serena declared with confidence.

"Hehe, you look fired up," Ash responded. Ash and Serena then had a little snack. Ash had a berry while Serena ate a macaron she prepared.

"Ash, you want a macaron?" Serena asked sweetly.

"Sure!" Ash said as he took a macaor and out it in his mouth. His mouth instantly filled with flavor! "These are the best Serena!"

Serena was flattered at the praise from Ash. She smiled and replied, "Thanks!"

After a while, Ash and Serena were about to leave when they were stopped. "Going somewhere?" a teenager that looked like he was eighteen that had an umbrella asked. "I notice you have a keystone." The teenager signaled to Ash's glove which had Ash's keystone.

"Sure, they say when trainer's eyes meet, then that means…" Ash started.

"A battle," the teenager started. "The name is Remo and Garchoo and I have been through so much together. Let's battle! Garchoo GO!"

"ROAAAR!" Garchoo roared as Ash noticed a bead necklace on Garchoo that looked like a mega stone.

Ash looked at Serena and Pikachu, "Serena, go stand over there with Pikachu." Serena nodded as Pikachu went into her shoulder. Ash then stared at Remo and called out his pokemon. "Charizard I choose you!"

"Gruaaaawww!" Charizard screeched as he saw Garchoo.

 **Time to play the battle music! Ash (Charizard) vs Remo (Garchoo):**

"Alright, Garchoo use dragon claw!" Remo exclaimed.

"You too Charizard!" Ash shouted.

"ROAAAR!" Both dragons exclaimed as they charged each other. The dragon claws collided with brutal strength. There was a lot of dust that was gathered and both Pokemon stayed strong.

"Dragon rush!" Remo shouted.

"Gruawww!" Garchoo shouted as he took to the skies and glowed blue. Garchoo quickly went straight for Charizard.

"Charizard get ready and use flare blitz!" Ash exclaimed. Charizard glowed a light blue and rushed straight for the barraging Garchoo To collide head on.

The gap was sealed quickly causing a large explosion between both pokemon. The smoke cleared and both pokemon looked at each other with confidence. It was now Remo's turn to counter. "Garchoo MEGA EVOLVE!" Remo shouted as he pressed the keystone in his umbrella. Garchoo became stronger and bigger. There was fangs all over his body and the hands were like scythes. Remo then made Ash worry more."DRACO METEOR!" he shouted.

Ash recoiled as he saw Garchoo send a orange ball of energy into the sky. The energy exploded into one of the strongest meteor showers Ash had ever seen since his battle against Grant or the pseudo legendary conflict at Lumiose… No it was stronger. "Charizard dodge it!" Charizard navigated through the meteors with ease until his path was crossed with one and got hit. Ash knew he had to do it now. He made up a cool statement and touched his keystone while saying it. "Keystone listen to my heart, beyond evolution, MEGA EVOLVE!"

Charizard turned black and blue with a large amount of flames that came from his mouth and tail. All of the fire was now blue.

"Charizard grab Garchomp!" Ash ordered.

"GRUAAWWW!" Charizard roared and headed straight for Garchoo.

"Dodge it!" Remo stated. Garchoo jumped up barely avoiding Charizard. Ash smirked at this and grew more confident.

"Now! DRAGON CLAW!" Charizard used an uppercut with green glowing claws and hit Garchoo with a very strong force. "Now seismic toss!"

"ROAAAARRRR!" Charizard roared and grabbed Garchoo. Garchoo struggled, but was not able to shake free. Charizard then made three loops in mid air and slammed Garchoo to the ground. The explosion was very large and affected a large area.

Serena recoiled at the explosion. "Pikachu, hold on!" she shouted while hugging Pikachu to protect him from the blast.

"Pi...ka..." Pikachu shouted holding onto Serena.

Ash was also having trouble standing. "Urgh," he groaned as the explosion cleared up. He then checked on his friends. "Serena, Pikachu, are you ok?"

"Yes Ash," Serena affirmed. "Now win this!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu shouted.

Ash looked at the field and noticed Garchoo up in front of Charizard. Remo was quick to make his call, "Dragon Claw!"

"Dragon Claw as well Charizard!" Ash ordered. Both pokemon met up and started clashing. Charizard was winning most of his clashes during the battle and was starting to wear down Garchoo even more even after the seismic toss.

Both trainers grew eager to finish the battle in the end, "FLARE BLITZ!/DRAGON RUSH!"

Both pokemon enveloped themselves in a blue aura and charged at each other. When they clashed head on the explosion was larger than before. Everyone was being recoiled by the blast which affected a large portion of the field.

When the dust cleared, Garchoo was on the ground in his original form. Garchoo obviously had been defeated.

"ROAAAARRR!" Charizard roared in victory.

"You tried your hardest Garchoo, take a break for now," Remo told his defeated dragon as he returned it to his pokeball. Remo then looked at Ash, "You are really strong, I hope to battle you again sometime!"

"You bet!" Ash responded as Remo walked off in another direction. Serena then came to Ash's side while Pikachu went to Ash's shoulder. "We are not far from Glorio now, want to fly there on Charizard?" As Ash said this, he got on Charizard and extended his hand towards Serena.

"Sure Ash," Serena replied as she took Ash's hand.

 **A while later:**

"Serena look, there it is! Glorio City!" Ash shouted as he saw the houses and lighting of the night. The city was really beautiful and had many flowers blooming around the city. It was the perfect place to hold the showcase.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu shouted. Everyone was feeling the breeze from the altitude on top of Charizard. It truly was a nice feeling.

"There it is! Kalos Queen… HERE I COME!" Serena exclaimed over the wind as Charizard descended into the nice city down below.

 **At Lumiose City:**

"Bonnie, are you ready to see Wulfric?" This were the words that a boy with a jump suit and lemon hair said. On his face was a pair of glaring glasses that looked down at his sister.

Like his brother, the girl had blue eyes and lemon hair, but she had a brown attire and a very cheerful attitude. "Of course Clemont! I am excited for tomorrow!" Bonnie said this with an excited tone as she looked at her brother called Clemont. Both siblings were in a room filled with many broken part and bits and pieces of contraptions. Bonnie watched as her brother packed he bags for the beginning of a short journey together. "Clemont, when we come back, can we see the Kalos League?" Bonnie asked with cute puppy eyes.

Clemont looked at his sister and smiled, "Of course Bonnie, remember that being the gym leader of the host city means that I will have to make sure things are running smoothly."

Bonnie sighed as she left the room through the open door, "And here we go again with the nerdy talk."

"B-Bonnie? Where are you going?" Clemont asked as he focused his attention out of the backpack and to his sister.

"To eat, dad probably has prepared something, right?"

Clemont sighed as he looked back to the backpack. It was big and with buttons on it because Clemont installed an Aimpom arm on it. Clemont then packed the sleeping bag and miraculously got it to fit inside. Finally leaning against the wall and slumping to the ground he wiped away some sweat from his forehead before telling himself, "This will be an interesting journey."

 **At the Glorious City Pokemon Center:**

"You are finally here, we were getting worried," Calem said as he and Shauna walked up to the duo that just entered the pokemon center.

"Thanks to you two," Ash replied as he crossed his arms. "You left me behind…"

"Pika pika…" Pikachu grunted with a similar sassy attitude to his trainer.

"Well I am glad you made it, sorry about that Serena," Shauna said with a solemn tone as she looked down.

Serena sighed and looked at Shauna with a smile, "It's alright. Tomorrow we start, and make sure you get your A game because I am not going to lose."

Ash and Calem stood back a little bit as they watched the two girls unwind themselves into an electric staredown with smirks. "Well me neither," Shauna replied as she shook Serena's hand with determination. Ash and Calem exchanged a smile until Calem decided to pull Ash in for a small brotherly hug, in which Calem wanted to whisper a small message to the raven haired trainer.

"Ash," Calem started at the slightly tense person he was hugging. "Do your part and I will do mine. Shauna will win, but you better make sure that Serena puts up a good challenge for Shauna."

Ash returned the favor and taunted Calem, "Same thing, but Serena will win it… I know so."

"Ummmm… Are you two done having your little reunion?"

"Pika pikachu…"

Ash and Calem both startled turned around to see Serena and Shauna eyeing the two trainers. "Are you talking behind our backs?" Shauna asked with a playful smile.

"Uhhhhhh…" both Ash and Calem replied with a slightly confused look.

Pika Pikachu," Pikachu replied as he got on Serena's shoulder and sweatdropped at the two males. This was going to be a very long night, and the electric rodent knew it.

 **Near Snowbelle City:**

The night time skyline of the small snowy city could be seen from where this pokemon stood. It was a female electric rodent that was bright yellow and had black outlines. She had ran away from the Santalune forest after a certain event occurred.

"Pi pi pi pi," the small female rodent called out as she neared a tree and climbed up with great agility and speed. "Pichu…" The female Pichu cooed as she reached the top of a tree and made her way into a small hole on the tree.

Inside, the Pichu found some berries along with small and soft nest that she had made. The Pichu then made her way into the nest to then circle around the small bed like figure to lie on it before she started to doze off and fall asleep.

" **Boom!"** Pichu shot out of her sleep with great stress as she made her way to the mouth of her small cave. "Pichu…" Pichu sighed as she shook her head and peeked out. She was terrified, but mostly frustrated at having to be involved in trouble once again. Pichu jumped from her tree and landed on the ground in all fours.

Pichu scanned the area around her to see that there was no danger and then ran farther into the forest to see what was going on. Not long after though, she screeched to a halt to see that there was a Snorunt lying on the snow in front of two Houndour belonging to people in orange suits that Pichu recognized all too well.

"Grrrr…" The Houndours grunted as they left with the men in orange suits.

Pichu was left with her mouth agape as she looked at the situation going on. She watched as the men and the Houndour left the area and then Pichu turned to the wounded Snorunt instantly running up to it. "Pichu Pichu?"

"Snoow…" Snorunt moaned as he lied there.

Pichu noticed a red spot on the Snorunt's head and touched it only to recoiled her hand back in pain as it was extremely hot. Pichu held her hand in the snow to prevent hurting herself anymore before running out and back into her tree. She instantly looked through the berries until she found the right one and then headed out of her small home and rushed back to the Snorunt.

"Pichu pi," Pichu replied with a smile as she fed the small berry to Snorunt. Snorunt's red spot suddenly started to slowly fade away. "Pichu!" Pichu cried with joy as she noticed that the burn in the ice type's body had been relieved by a small berry.

"Snorunt," Snorunt cried as it got up from the snow and looked around. "Snow Snorunt!" Snorunt replied to Pichu in an appreciative tone.

"Pi chu!" Pichu said with glee as she started running around the Snorunt with excitement. Snorunt saw this and began to prance around as well causing loud cries due to the fun.

"Frrosss lassss," a new voice called out causing Pichu and Snorunt to stop in their tracks. Pichu stopped and gritted her teeth as she put a hand out with her ears perked.

Pichu then twitched her ears and she felt a cold presence coming to her. "Pichu…" Pichu replied coldly as she gathered electricity on her cheeks.

"Froslass?" Froslass appeared in front of the duo suddenly and Pichu retreated her stance as soon as the electric rodent noticed that the ice and ghost type was looking around for something… or someone.

"Snorunt!" Pichu witnessed as the ice type then ran up to the Froslass and from there the two ice types created an embrace in front of Pichu. Pichu's eyes went a little wide eyed, but then she looked down at the snow with a weak smile and a shadowed face.

"Pi… chu," Pichu sighed with tears streaming down her cheeks as Snorunt and her mother slowly left the scene leaving the female Pichu on her own.

"Fletching!" Pichu turned around and up into the night sky to notice that there were so many of the normal and flying type pokemon flying around the pine forest. Pichu watched as they flew in a flock and also forced a smile.

Pichu then decided that she would walk around the forest. Maybe a small stroll would allow her to clear her mind from what she just saw. Sadly, every step of the way brought a memory of the men in orange suits on her tail. Pichu shook her head as she reached the front of a clearing. It was just a small place where there was no trees around.

Pichu then flinched to see that there was a log in the middle, but that was not what grabbed her attention, it was what was on it…

Pichu was staring at a Pikachu that was sitting on the log with its head down and looking… _Depressed?_

"Pichu? Pichu pi?!" Pichu asked with glee as she began to run closer to the Pikachu.

The Pikachu just looked at the female Pichu and Lowered his head, "Pika… Pikachu pika…"

"Pichu Pichu pi?" Pichu responded with her arms wide to the Pikachu. "Pichu Pichu pi Pichu-"

" _KAPI_ PIKACHU PIKA!" Pikachu responded venomous as the larger electric mouse stood up from the log and stared down the Pichu.

"PICHU PICHUPI!"

" _Kapi_ pika Pikachu!"

Pichu gritted her teeth and gathered electricity in her cheeks. She felt her eyes go on fire as she stared down Pikachu. The larger pokemon did not react as Pichu clenched her fists and shot the electricity straight at Pikachu. "PIIII...CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!"

Pikachu did not react…

He did not even flinch…

The electric beam was about to hit the Pikachu when suddenly Pichu felt the world around her turn and twist. " **ZAP!"** Pichu grabbed her head to look at where she had shot the beam to then see that there was nothing…

All the electric beam did was hit he snow…

The Pikachu was just a figure of Pichu's imagination.

"Pichu…" Pichu replied as she hugged herself to warm up a little. "Pichu…" Pichu sighed as she looked down in a depressed tone thinking about a certain Pikachu that helped her out once.

"Pichu…" Pichu cried as she slowly started to make her way down towards the same tree she resides in. She crawled in and looked through her stack of berries. She then found a green round berry and without hesitation ate it. A Lum berry, something to snap her out of her confusion.

"Pichu pi Pichu," Pichu chanted as she crawled into her small nest and fell asleep in the warmth of the small twigs. The twigs that would protect her all night from the shivering cold of Snowbelle City.

 **A/N: I hope you guys enjoyed 2016, I hope we all have great time sharing stories in 2017 as well! I AM HYPED UP!**

 **Yes, I made Remo younger. I think he will make a fine rival for Charizard. I know Ash won't have it easy with him in the future.**

 **This was a short chapter because of introducing Remo and because I wanted the master class to be special! So yea, not as long as the other chapters, sorry about that (IK this is short for me too).**

 **I may have left the battling a little crappy, but keep in mind I improved things for the next chapter. Also, I decided to add a little of more context as to what to expect in the future!**

 **AmourshippingCanon gave me an idea for the masterclass that I am going to use. So all credit goes to him at one part so I will tell you where it is.**

 **Master class will begin soon, so let's get hype!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **AmourshippingFan:** hehe, glad you liked it.

 **NinjaFang1331:** Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed!

 **Cutesaralisa:** I have to be honest with you, the reason why I rushed the prologue was because I was to lazy to write the time from badges 2-7 xD! Other than that, I am just making the ship a little relevant. Don't want to spoil much, but I still haven't taken a serious step with Amourshipping other than in a few spots you will see later on ;).


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Masterclass is starting this chapter. This will be an interesting chapter as Ash gets noticed. By this I mean, by the region. Even though Ash had jumped from Prism Tower, no one would have been expecting what happened recently.**

 **Also, we get introduced to Paula. The female version of Paul (get it). She is not Ash's rival though. She gives Serena a hard time not only as a performer, but also as a love rival. Paula is also known to have a bad temper and be rude to Serena. This will be a great debut for her to prove how Serena and Paula get along.**

 **AmourshippinngCanon gets credit for the plot twist idea :)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 12- Are you Sure He answered correctly?

 **Exiting a pokemon center the next day:**

"Serena wait for me!" Ash shouted completely out of breath. He was trying to run up to Serena with a bunch of food in his hands while also trying not to stain his precious scarf.

"We have to hurry up and get to the lobby of the auditorium as soon as possible!" Serena said urgently. "Registration ends soon and I have to get ready for the beginning of the masterclass!" The duo and Pikachu was running through Glorio City passing streets, people, and buildings while also ignoring the beautiful landscape of the city. They were urgent to get to the showcase as it was starting soon.

 **At the showcase:**

"Man, where is Serena and Ash?" Tierno asked as he sat on a couch in the lobby. The lobby was very bright with sky lights and there was also a lot of couches to sit at. Tierno was with Trevor and Calem while Shauna was registering.

"I think they are getting here, let's hope they do," Trevor said with a slightly panicked voice. Suddenly, the door burst open with a large bang turning heads in the direction of the doorway.

"Speaking of the devil, there they are now!" Calem started as he stood up from his seat recognizing the raven haired trainer and honey blonde performer. "Ash, Serena!"

Ash and Serena noticed the trio and walked up to them. "Hey guys," Ash wheezed with an out of breath voice.

"Sup!" All three boys replied in unison making them all chuckle at being able to think of the same greeting.

Trevor then spoke up with eyes widened as he remembered a crucial fact, "Serena get to registration! Shauna is already doing it!"

"I agree Serena, go now I still have to eat," Ash replied looking at the food in his hands as he sat down next to Calem with his mouth watering.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu agreed as he took a ketchup packet from Ash and cracked it open to expose the tomato contents that made the electric mouse crave.

"Alright I will see you guys later!" Serena stated with a slight chuckle while shifting her gaze out of Pikachu as she left for the desk to meet up with Shauna and register for the contest of her lifetime. Ash watched her walk off and disappear behind the counter before turning back to his food. He then started gobbling down the food whole which made the others nervous.

"How hungry are you Ash?" Tierno asked with a shocked expressions as he looked at Ash. He had to admit, he had never expected Ash to look this hungry in his life, and here he was gobbling down what seemed to be a large sandwich that he must have bought on the way to the auditorium.

"Extremely, I overslept this morning and Serena had to use Pikachu to wake me up with thunderbolt," Ash said sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head and then continued to look back down and eat his food.

"Ok, now, just how much do you guys sleep together?" Calem asked Ash with a sly look on his face. Ash nearly choked on his food at this as he was obviously not stupid to know what Calem was talking about. Calem was surprised to know that Ash even understood, but it was definitely the next part that told Calem how dense Ash really was:

"Umm, we slept in different beds, you know?" Ash responded rather embarrassed. "And sleeping with a girl? That is…" Ash then shivered like if he was afraid of 'cooties'. "I don't know, what it is, but I don't think it is good…"

"Mhm, keep telling yourself that," Everyone else smirked and muttered to themselves making sure that Ash would not hear, which he didn't by lack of response.

"Anyways, I am sure Serena will win this!" Ash exclaimed as he pumped a fist into the air trying to change the topic.

"Wanna bet? I am going with Shauna!" Calem pressured while sticking out his hand as if a challenge.

"Deal!" Ash responded with a smirk sas he shook Calem's hand and shook it with determination.

At that moment, a girl with magenta hair and fancy clothes came up to the boys, "Hello, I am 'Ariana', I came to tell you guys that if you are good at quizzes, you should get ready and sign up over there."

"Quizzes, why?" Ash asked slightly perplexed at the statement. Why would anyone even want to take a quiz if they were not participating?

"You'll see," Ariana winked and walked towards the desk and disappeared from the sight of the other trainers.

"Doesn't she look like Aira?" Tierno said in a low voice to make sure that not many people heard.

"Now that you mention it, she does," Trevor replied slightly confused.

Ash and Calem seemed to like the idea so Ash was the first to shift his gaze to the smiling jet black haired trainer. "Well, quizzes are fun, Calem what do you think?" Ash said with enthusiasm.

"I agree Ash, want to sign up?" Calem asked with a shrug of his shoulders. At this, Ash nodded confirming the response and both trainers got up and walked towards the desk to sign up.

On the other side of the pokemon center, there was a woman with a white attire that seemed to have wings. She had short hair and a necklace with a keystone shaped like a music note. This woman eyed Ash with curiosity. "It's him, the boy with that Sceptile…" She whispered to herself while trying not to get noticed by the many people that were in the lobby.

 **Serena POV:**

I had just finished registering and my pokedex was being returned to me.

"All done!" the woman told me with a smile. "Good luck and try your best!"

"Thanks!" I reply back. "I won't lose!"

I put away my pokedex and walk towards the door behind me expecting to see Shauna. Instead, I got shoulder slammed by a girl with purple hair and an aggressive attitude… Paula.

"... Pathetic," Paula replied.

I look at her in the eyes and become infuriated, "What did… you say…?"

"Oh please, after this is over I will be the Kalos Queen and have Ash under my wing," Paula smirked at me. My cheeks became warm with sexual embarrassment and pure anger.

"I'll show you!" I retaliate and walk back towards the room Paula came out from, not looking back. I sit down and grab my hair in frustration. "Uuurrgghh!"

"Serena, are you alright?" I hear a familiar voice. I look up and am relieved.

I smile trying to hide my anger and speak up in a relax tone, "Hey Shauna…"

"Don't let her get to you like that, remember to never give up…" Shauna started.

I exhaled and replied, "Until the very end…" I felt more relaxed now that Shauna was here and I did not feel any more intimidated by the competition around me. All the other girls were putting on makeup or dressing up, so I went over to the dressing room and started to change.

I put on a red dress like the one I used at the dance party. I also put beads on my hair and I tied the ribbon Ash gave me where I normally put it: my chest.

I was ready.

 **With the boys in the lobby:**

A woman came into the lobby and walked up to the boys, she had brown hair and a gold hair clip, "Hello boys, did Serena already go to change?"

"Mrs. Grace!" Everyone else exclaimed at the sight of Serena's mother.

"Serena went to change and get ready," Ash said with a smile.

"That is great," Grace responded back with a smile. She did find Ash as a nice boy so she trusted him well. Specially since Ash ran a Rhyhorn race for Grace before he went to Lumiose City for his fifth gym battle against Clemont.

After some chatting, a person got on the loudspeaker so that everyone could hear, "The showcase will begin in thirty minutes… We are going to need all spectators to go to the stands and I am going to need all of the males that are participating in the quiz to go to the fitting rooms to change."

Ash and Calem went to the changing room while Tierno, Trevor and Grace went to the stands. Trevor and Tierno offered to take care of Pikachu.

"Good luck to both of you," Grace told Ash and Calem as she went to the stands.

Ash and Calem walked through the halls at a loss of where to go. They eventually got to where they had to go, but found out there was only two suits left. Both were tuxedos with a black bow tie and underneath was a white dress shirt. Both of them put the clothes on, but Ash left on his gloves and scarf.

"I'm not used to dressing up like this," Ash said sheepishly.

"Me neither," Calem responded. "By any chance, are your pokemon with you?"

"Yea, all but Pikachu who is in the stands," Ash said as the duo walked to where all the other males were. They were all dressed up the same way, some of them were picking who they wanted to be partnered with. The room they were in was very large, but bland too as there was no furniture. Apparently, the wall was behind the stage so they would be chosen by a performer.

"This Samantha girl is really hot," one boy said.

"Shauna is the prettiest, I am going for her!" another boy with spiky hair said gaining Calem's attention. Calem started to look like he was going to intervene, but Ash stopped him.

"Calem, the performers choose, not us," Ash whispered. Calem was still tense, but relaxed his blood boil.

Someone in a security outfit then came up to Ash, "Hello, your scarf, can you take it off?"

Ash recoiled, but in a defeated way took off his beloved scarf and hid it in his shirt as it was too big for the pocket of his dress pants. It was also to stiff to tuck in so he wrapped it around his shoulder inside the tuxedo.

Suddenly, a screen appeared where the wall would open and Monsieur Pierre started to talk.

 **Serena POV:**

I was in a small confined space. Inside there was three keyholes. I figured that this was how i would use my three princess keys. Suddenly, the crowd roared as the door where I would exit through had a television screen portraying Monsieur Pierre.

"Hello! And welcome to ze Masterclass Showcase! I'm your host Monsieur Pierre! And who will win this Tiara or defend it?" Pierre said making the crowd roar as Klefki showed off the Tiara. I could barely hear through the crowd as Monsieur Pierre began to talk again. "Alors, let's begin! First, let's show off our beautiful performers taking part in this competition! May our performers use ze three princess keys they have gathered to open a gate to their future!"

"Un!" the crowd roared as I put my first key in. I remembered the moment I cut my shredded dress using the motto Ash taught me when we first met.

"Deux!" I put the second key in. I remember how I pushed through and won through everything with a spectacular performance from Braixen and Floette.

"Trois!" I put the key in and remembered using Sylveon to wrap up the performance and ended up winning with determination against all odds.

The door started to glow as the screen stopped showing Monsieur Pierre.

At that moment I felt my pulse begin to pick up as I felt a gust of small breeze brush my hair to the sides. I felt my agape mouth slowly curve upwards into a smile as I saw what I was going to go up against.

Then, the door slid all the way down. I looked around and saw the cheering crowd. Lot's of people watching and cheering for everyone on stage. I look to my left and see Shauna smiling. I look around the stage and see Klefki with a Tiara in hand which is supposed to be given to the Kalos Queen. There was thirty performers on stage and I knew I had to do my best.

Monsieur Pierre then looked at the crowd and stared at the performers and me and began to speak. "We now have thirty performers that can become ze new Kalos Queen, while we also have Aria trying to defend her title. Who will win? It is up to you and ze way they perform! So let's get into ze first challenge!"

The crowd again gave a deafening cheer for everyone as three podiums went up in front of an obstacle course. A starting line that went into three separate rock climbs and then at the top was three balls for the three routes. Then a tight rope back and finally a track with hurdles going around the stage. The finish line then also was for the three paths. I was intimidated by the fact that I would need a pokemon to do that and I really only had Braixen.

"Our first round is a pokemon quiz!" Pierre exclaimed. The next part got my attention: "It will be a partner activity which means you will choose a partner and one of his pokemon to do ze course. Ze partner will also answer ze second part of now two part questions… Now, ze first pokemon to cross ze finish line with ze ball earns the question for the team… If a team gets ze question wrong, then ze second place team gets to steal!" the crowd roared at the instructions. They were ready. "First to get three right moves on! Now… choose a partner from ze fine selection of males!"

Partner… I saw as the wall behind the stage opened up. Suddenly, I saw him… ASH! I looked at him and he looked at me. Ash smiled and I started to walk up to him.

"Ash, would you-" I started when I reached him.

"Ash, be my partner!" I heard Paula screech as she took Ash's hand. This maneuver made me steam up in anger. I looked at Ash and began to feel hopeless… Paula was the one that would get him…

I guess I should get another partner then…

Wait...

 _"Sorry Paula, but I want to do this with Serena."_

"That slob?" Paula asked in a somewhat very irritated tone of voice. "She is ugly, her hair is too short and that ribbon is disgusting!" Paula retaliated as she motioned to the ribbon on the chest of my dress.

My heart rate quickened… I felt a million dagger start to rush my chest.

I then gritted my teeth, I felt like I was about to say something back, but Ash beat me to it: "Serena is not a slob, she is very pretty in my opinion. Her hair is just above her shoulders so it is somewhat longer than normal hair and it looks great as well… and just so you know… _I gave her that ribbon!_ " Ash's outburst surprised me, but by looking at Ash, I could tell HE was just as surprised. Was he telling the truth? He did say he gave me the ribbon which is true, but am I really pretty to him?

"Fine then!" Paula grunted as she walked off to another person in a sour mood. I saw Calem with Shauna and became a little intimidated, but other than that I knew I had a great partner.

"Serena, would you be my partner?" Ash asked nervously. After all he said, he was still recovering and I could see it in the tone of his voice… It was quite shaky.

I felt my cheeks heat up a little as a blush came in, "I'd love to Ash." At that time, the entire crowd started cheering. Why is the crowd cheering? I just mentally shrugged my shoulders and was happy to be partners with Ash.

 **At the stands (Normal POV):**

Grace was watching in awe as Ash defended Serena. Little did Ash and Serena know that Ash's outburst against Paula was broadcasted all over Kalos and the microphone picked up every word. Of course Ash and Serena were unable to figure out what happened as when Serena accepted Ash to be her partner, the crowd roared in approval.

"Ash with Serena!" Trevor shouted. "And Calem with Shauna!"

Tierno was looking hype at the showcase, "Good luck to all of you!"

"PIKAPI!" Pikachu shouted with excitement. He was sitting between between Grace and Trevor enjoying the scene.

"Serena, best of luck," Grace muttered to herself.

 **Normal POV a little later:**

"Serena, we are up next," Ash started. "I will use Frogadier in the obstacle course since I want to train his agility."

Serena sighed, "You and your training." Calem and Shauna had swept the quiz like if nothing. Serena had no intention to lose this early.

A woman then went up to the duo, "Serena, Ash, you guys are up now, best of luck."

"Right!" the duo responded.

"Whoa!" Ash shouted as the floor started to move. Serena giggled as the floor moved to be in front of a podium. There were two other pairs on the stage, both were foreign to Ash and Serena, but they had to work their best.

"Now, gentlemen, please show us ze pokemon you will use to compete!" Pierre instructed as the crowd watched intently for the pokemon to be showed.

"Frogadier I choose you!" Ash exclaimed as a white light sparkled Frogadier.

"Espeon!" One other guy said showing off an Espeon.

"Makuhita!" the other teenager said as Makuhita came out.

Pierre looked at the competition and seemed confident, "Alright then, our first part of the first question is: What is the berry that cures sleep? BEGIN!"

Battle music can start

"Alright Frogadier use your frubbles to get up the rock climb quickly!" Ash ordered.

"Dier dier dier!" Frogadier said as he climbed the rocks at the speed of a ninja.

The others were surprised at how Frogadier moved. Frogadier got the ball and passed through the tight rope with ease. After that, Frogadier got to the hurdles and simply jumped over them. Frogadier finished first leaving the other pokemon still at the rock climb.

"Ze first question is for Serena," Pierre started. "Ze question was, what berry cures sleep. What is ze answer?"

Serena took a deep breath and thought of her answer. After that she looked at Pierre and said, "Chesto berry."

"Correct!" Pierre called out. "One point for Ash and Serena!" The crowd cheered at the victory of the first question. Then Pierre turned to Ash, "To assure you get the point, Ash, what pokemon would you find in the wild that can be woken up by a pokeflute?"

Ash thought about his answer, "Snorlax!"

"Correct!" The other pokemon now got to the starting line again, ready for round two. "Ze next question is: What move is able to assure a pokemon gets paralyzed?"

The same thing happened this time. Frogadier used his frubbles to make things easier for himself and with ease made it to the finish line.

"Ash and Serena again, Serena, ze answer s'il vous plaît?" Pierre asked.

"The answer is Thunder Wave!" Serena responded.

"Very well Serena," Pierre said as he turned to Ash. "Ash, name one of ze two gym leaders zat have zis move and in which pokemon do zey use it?"

Ash thought about his answer, but quickly responded, "Clemont, the Lumiose City Gym Leader, and his Heliolisk knows Thunder Wave and Olympia also has a Meowstic that knows it!" Ash recalled how he used Goodra's hydration and rain dance to cure his paralysis during his battle against Clemont.

"Correct! I was only expecting one, but you managed to give both," Pierre responded with a chuckle. The crowd was excited. Ash and Serena smiled to each other, they were leading and only needed one more question left to respond.

The other two males were getting desperate, they did not want to disappoint their performers.

"Ze next question will be kind of… hard." Pierre eyed the teams while then sneaking a glance at Ash, but it was obvious that the audience had gone quiet just to know what was going to be the question. "If a trainer were to give an item for his pokemon, what pokemon would you think would have a twig in his mouth?" Pierre asked. "BEGIN!"

Ash tensed at the question, he definitely knew the answer. He ordered Frogadier to do the same as before, but this time the others were very desperate. One went as far as to attack Frogadier:

"Makuhita use arm thrust!" one of the teenagers exclaimed. Everyone gasped as they saw the attack for Frogadier.

Ash's eyes widened, but he kept his cool, "Frogadier counter with aerial ace!"

"Fro...ga...DIER!" Frogadier made one of his limbs glow white before turning around and colliding with the orange glowing fist headed in the direction of Frogadier. Suddenly, aerial ace overpowered and sent Makuhita to the ground unable to battle forcing the teenager to recall Makuhita.

"Ash's and Brannon's teams do not get to answer first for what just happened, since Frogadier caused more illegal damage in ze long run, Ash and Serena will only have a chance to answer if ze other two contestants get ze answer wrong!" Pierre snapped.

Brannon and the other teenager smirked at Ash. Serena looked at Ash and got worried as she saw rage building up on Ash. She out hand on Ash's shoulder and told him to relax. Effectively, Ash did calm down and Serena felt it by the tension built up on Ash's shoulder.

"Zendaya, you get to answer first, what is ze answer?" Pierre asked with an unsure expression.

"Ummm… Trevenant?" The performer called Zendaya replied, it was almost like a question, obviously a guess at the pokemon.

"Wrong, Cali, you get to steal!" Pierre informed with a disappointed tone on his voice.

"Ummm… Sudowoodo?" Cali responded unsure with her answer as well as it also came out as a question.

"Wrong, I am surprised we got to Ash and Serena again," Pierre remarked with a slight chuckle as he eyed the duo in front of him. "Serena, ze answer?"

Ash was tensed up completely, he hoped Serena would not know for once. His worries were confirmed when Serena thought about exactly what she saw a couple days prior when she asked Ash about an evolution. "The answer is Sceptile!"

Ash looked at Pierre who looked at Serena surprised, the raven haired trainer could not help but feel his heart rate rise. Ash hoped Serena somehow got it wrong…

Ash felt as the heart in his chest began to bang his rib cage:

 _Bum bum_

"Correct!" Pierre exclaimed making the crowd roar.

Ash wanted to die at this point, he knew his Sceptile had to be the only one that wore a twig in his mouth.

 _Bum bum_

"Ash, recently there some leaked footage of a Sceptile that evolved from a Grovyle and then defeated a Darkrai at a base zat exploded some time ago," Pierre started. "Zis Sceptile had a twig on his mouth…"

 _Bum bum_

At the side of the stage:

Calem was completely tensed up, he knew where this was going.

"Calem is something wrong?" Shauna asked worried.

"Yes…"

"What is it?"

"... Just watch," Calem replied in an alarmed tone.

Back at the stands:

"Come on Ash make Serena proud!" Grace shouted through the crowd with clenched arms and definitely a very stressed out tone. "Bring the girl to home base, hit the grand slam!"

"Pikachu…" Pikachu was worried for his trainer though, he sensed the tension in Ash.

On the top of the stands with Aria:

"It has to be him," A woman muttered.

"What is it Diantha?" Aria asked from her seat while looking to her left to see the champion of Kalos looking down at the stage with great interest.

"Just watch," The woman called Diantha replied to her right with a smile. Diantha had grown some interest on the raven haired trainer that was down in the stage. It was, in fact, interesting for her to see that he was right in front of her. Diantha turned her attention to Serena and then sighed as she whispered something: "That girl is very attached to him… I think she might be crucial to how this boy performs in the future."

Back at the quiz:

"Ze Sceptile's trainer had an article of clothing around his neck, can you describe it?" Pierre asked. Frogadier instantly tensed up at this as well.

Ash put his hand on his shoulder and through his tuxedo felt it, the answer. Ash was debating whether to answer or not. 'Should I answer? Come on for Serena!' Ash thought. The crowd had become dead silent.

 _Bum bum_

Serena noticed Ash having trouble and talked with him, "Ash, just guess if you need to." Serena then forced a reassuring smile. "We can get another question right anyways…"

Ash looked at Serena's blue eyes and knew he needed to do it despite the bad memory of being reunited with his father persisted.

 _Bum bum_

Ash took a deep breath and answered, "A blue scarf with two ends that suspend in mid air."

 _Bum bum_

 _Bum bum_

 _Bum bum_

"Correct, but may I ask, the footage was only leaked to some individuals… Only those that have the power of mega evolution, how do you know?" Pierre asked.

 _Bum bum_

 _Bum bum_

 _Bum bum_

 _Bum bum_

 _Bum bum_

 _Bum bum_

Ash feared this, but he had to do it. He took a deep breath and spoke into the quiet auditorium, "First off, I have the power of mega evolution." Ash showed off his keystone, but then reached for his scarf and pulled it out before speaking again making others gasp. Ash put the scarf around his neck the way it was always worn and looked at a distressed Pierre. "Secondly… _That trainer was… me."_

Then the clip of the leaked footage was played for everyone to see on the large screen. Serena was shocked as she looked at the distressed Ash.

The auditorium cheered as they saw the battle.

"Serena is the one that advances to ze next round!" Pierre announced in amusement with the crowd.

 **A/N: Wow, well done Ash. Also, there was also a hint about Trevor in this episode. Tell me if you found it in reviews, it is not that bad of a spoiler.**

 **Nice addition of the heart beat huh? OK, I know it might be weird when it was in 3rd person POV, but at least you felt it when Ash was revealing a secret...**

 **Things get real next time, believe me...**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some Reviews:**

 **Ninjafang1331: Thanks, glad you enjoyed the battle.**

 **AmourshippingFan: They will! Glad you liked the battle and the chapter itself!**

 **TheLegendaryGuy: It was Garchoo, that is the nickname in the anime… Thanks Remo! Anyways, Serena is not Mairin, she will come in later into the story, but don't worry about the ship xD! You are VERY accurate about the Pichu thing, but the scene is supposed to foreshadow something else ;)... See if you can guess that. Anyways, glad you enjoyed!**

 **Guest 1: I am glad you enjoyed the chapter! Hope to see you in the next one!**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Ok so Serena has been able to pass onto the second round because of Ash's dark revelation. This worries Serena a lot since she cares about Ash. Things will get a little intense this chapter.**

 **Disclaimer: This will be a very dark turn in the masterclass, in fact probably darker than most masterclass depictions in fanfictions, so be warned…**

 **Disclaimer 2: I don't own Pokemon, "How do you Love Someone", or "When You're Gone"**

Chapter 13- Masterclass Tension… Serena vs Paula

 **At the stands:**

"Yea Ash, awesome battle!" Trevor shouted as the clip of Sceptile vs Darkrai played again.

"Pi?" Pikachu raised his ears and ran out of the stands without anyone noticing.

"Where did Pikachu go?" Grace asked worryingly.

"Probably to find Ash," Tierno replied calmly. "He'll be fine."

 **Walking off stage:**

Serena and Ash had not spoken a word to each other ever since the revelation. Infact, as they walked, Ash had clenched fists and what looked like a broken spirit.

The coast was clear and Serena decided it was best to try and talk with the raven haired trainer. Serena got in front of Ash and locked her blue eyes with his auburn ones. Looking into his eyes, Serena saw pain and sadness, it concerned her so much that she decided to try and be gentle with her voice: "Can you tell me what you did when you left Anistar City?... Like, before we met up?"

"None of your business," Ash said coldly while looking away, obviously attempting to avoid eye contact. Serena was absolutely triggered at this, and this sparked her vital signs to rise as she retaliated back.

"What happened Ash?! You don't need to go through this, I am here for you!" Serena snapped while she clenched her fists with undeniable strength. She could not understand why Ash would hide something from her… She felt like a million daggers were piercing her.

Ash just turned around and spoke up without emotion, "Calem and I just… we just helped someone out that needed our help."

Serena did not believe a word as she spoke up with an irritated voice, "Then tell me what 'friend' you helped by battling such a dangerous battle! Why did you do it?!"

"I had to! If I did not then… Then Calem and I would had been killed, just like my mom!" Ash said through clenched teeth trying not to admit why he was going through this at the same time. It was painful for him to admit that he could have been killed, but it made it worse that Serena probably should not have known that...

"Why do you compare yourself to your mother like that! I understand that you must be hurting, but what does this have to do with her?!" Serena exclaimed while her blood boiled. The sound echoed throughout the whole hallway and the words resonated with Ash as he flinched a little as he heard this.

"It's because… my father… was the person I battled," Ash revealed while hiding his eyes in his cap which he had put on after leaving the stage. He had changed back to his normal attire and was boiling in anger and regret for revealing himself… He regretted answering correctly… He probably should have just answered another question right. At the midst of the moment though, Ash did not feel like anything made sense to him, so he still answered correctly. Something he now wishes he could have taken back.

"Why didn't you make peace?! He was your father Ash!" Serena exclaimed at the verge of tears as she said the next part: "If you would have died… what would happen to your Pokemon, your friends...! WHAT DO YOU THINK WOULD HAPPEN TO ME?!" Serena burst out in tears at nearly confessing her deepest feelings before looking down and saying in a very soft voice that Ash could barely hear, "What would I do if you died, Ash?!"

Ash just kept his head down with eyes being shadowed.

"ANSWER ME!" Serena suddenly pleaded echoing her voice through the hallways and making her words pierce Ash's broken soul.

 **Nightcore- How do you Love Someone**

Ash just kept his head down and walked around Serena. A million thoughts in his mind, but mostly regret and pain for being remembered about the experience of battling his father. Ash still found significance in what Serena said, even though Ash did not completely understand. He valued Serena and wanted to protect her, so he walked away in order to stop her from getting answers from him.

 _Momma never told me how to love, daddy never told me how to feel, momma never told me how to touch…_

 _DADDY NEVER SHOWED ME HOW TO HEAL!_

Serena just watched Ash walk away in sadness. Tears were running down her cheeks and she was a complete wreck… 'Why Ash, why did you risk your life like that?' Serena thought as she sat in the corner of the hallway and sobbed uncontrollably. Serena then reached into her pocket and grabbed a handkerchief to wipe her tears away… until she noticed what it was.

 _Momma never set a good example, daddy never held momma's hand. Momma found everything hard to handle… DADDY NEVER STOOD UP LIKE A MAN!_

"ARGH! You stinking little bastard!" Serena screeched as she threw the handkerchief across the hallway. She felt lost, she felt lonely, she felt helpless.

 **With Ash walking to the lobby:**

 _I walked around, frozen. Emotionally broken…_

 _Getting it on…_

 _Getting it on..._

Ash kept himself from not bursting into tears for long enough now. He felt like he could break down at any moment. He walked up to the empty lobby since everyone was at the auditorium and there was no one around. Ash then went up to the wall and punched it with all his might unleashing his inner burden.

 _HOW DO YOU LOVE SOMEONE, WITHOUT GETTING HURT?!_

 _How do you love someone? WITHOUT CRAWLING IN THE DIRT?!_

"Dad… Why the hell are you like this?! I tried my hardest to love you and mom and now… ARGHHH! I..." Ash exclaimed as tears rolled down his cheeks and he punched the wall. "I… I…" Ash kept punching the wall in frustration. Who could blame him? Ash had just leveled the magnitude of the problem to someone that did not need to experience the same pain.

 _So far in my life, clouds have blocked the sun..._

"PIKAPI!" Pikachu shouted as he ran up to the crippled Ash Ketchum.

"What now Pikachu?" Ash asked wiping away his tears.

"Pi pikachu pi pika!" Pikachu exclaimed. Ash did not understand at first, but then Pikachu pointed to the scarf he wore.

"You're right Pikachu, I should not…"

 **With Serena:**

 _How do you love, how do you love someone?_

"Ugh, you little runt!" A voice exclaimed as another girl walked by. Serena looked up to see non other than Paula looking at her with a grin as if she got an idea to pick on Serena. "I see you have given up, you totally are a total loser, I don't expect you flat chested, geeky, out of style bookworm to even make the freestyle round."

 _I was always the chosen child, the biggest scandal I became.._.

Serena just clenched her fists to the point that blood dripped from her knuckles since her nails penetrated her skin. Serena stood up with eyes that could kill and stared down her opponent.

Paula seemed amused and grabbed the handkerchief on the ground. Instantly Serena looked at it and her eyes widened.

"You want it?" Paula asked.

Serena just looked at the handkerchief and gritted her teeth harder, "Give it back… right now…"

"You are going to have to get it from me then," Paula smirked as she started walking away with it.

Serena had enough at this point, she ran up to Paula and gave her a strong slap in the hand to make her drop the handkerchief to the ground. Pain seared through Paula as she reacted quickly and grabbed ahold of Serena's arm.

Paula then started twisting Serena's right arm with all her might making Serena wince in pain. Then Paula let go of a dazed Serena and punched her in the stomach knocking Serena against the wall.

 _They told me I'd never survive..._

"Ta ta loser," Paula smirked as she left the scene.

Serena slumped against the wall and sat down in the floor again while grabbing her stomach in pain. Serena then looked towards Ash's handkerchief on the ground and sobbed uncontrollably again. "AHHH Just get out of here you stupid, oblivious Pokemon-Master wanna be!" This time, she threw it against the wall with all of her might accidently hitting her twisted right arm making her wince in a lot of pain. Serena then wept into her hands until a flash of light appeared in front of her.

 _BUT SURVIVAL IS MY MIDDLE NAME!_

"Braixen brai braixen!" Braixen exclaimed as she scolded her trainer.

Serena in a defeated tone said, "What now Braixen?"

How do you love someone… And make it work? How do you love someone, without crawling in the dirt, so far in my life, clouds have blocked the sun...

"BRAIXEN!" Braixen shouted as she grabbed the handkerchief that Ash gave Serena and put it in Serena's hands. "Brai braixen!"

 _How do you love? How do you love someone?_

Serena looked at the cloth and remembered something she was taught a long time ago, by someone. Serena stood up and used the handkerchief to wash away the tears, then stood up with fire in her eyes…

 _Someone..._

"You're right Braixen, I shouldn't…"

Shows Ash on the left and Serena on the right:

"GIVE UP UNTIL THE END!" both trainers shouted with their might that their echoes boomed throughout the hallways.

 **At the stands:**

"The second round will begin soon, where is Serena?" Grace asked as she watched from her seat how the performers all were gathering on the stage.

"I have no clue," Tierno responded.

"I was pretty sure she was with Ash after round one, last time I saw them, Serena was very worried about Ash… Shauna and I grew worried ourselves, but we decided to let them have their moment alone," Calem, who had recently just joined them responded.

"WAIT! There she is right now!" Trevor exclaimed pointing at a figure with honey blond hair walking on stage for the second round. The teenaged girl looked like her eyes were ready to win anything put in her way.

"Finally, ze last performer has arrived!" Pierre exclaimed from the middle of the stage making everyone clap for Serena. Serena surprised the audience because of what she did next.

Serena went up to Paula through clenched fists and stared down Paula with pure anger making Paula recoil. She looked up and forced a smile and did what she did not expect herself to do. "To a great masterclass," Serena forced out of her mouth while stretching out her hand as if to handshake.

Grace, Tierno, Trevor, and Calem were all surprised. The crowd was dead silent at the declaration that Serena had just done hoping that good sportsmanship will come…

The opposite happened:

"As if loser," Paula remarked as she slapped away Serena's hand. Serena winced in pain as it was the same twisted arm, but she shook it off and walked to her spot next to Shauna.

"BOOOO!"

"WHAT WAS THAT?!"

"THAT WAS SAD!"

"WHY DON'T YOU RESPECT OTHERS?!"

The crowd was roaring with boos and hate towards Paula who just stood there emotionless. Paula crossed her arms and made a dignifying, "Hmph!" declaring she was not up to anything thus earning her negativity.

 **Normal POV in the Stage:**

"Calm down!" Pierre started. "Zis will get interesting soon, but for now, I need everyone to be quiet!"

The entire crowd calmed down as Pierre commanded everyone to stop booing.

"Now, let's begin ze second round of our masterclass showcase!" Pierre said as he looked up to his side and grabbed his staff. "It has been decided that there will be a performance battle round! This round includes a performance battle between two performers!"

A battlefield came up and the audience looked at the stage in awe from the transformation. It was a plain field with no formations on it and two trainer boxes.

Serena looked at the battlefield with some intimidation. 'How can I battle?' she asked herself. Serena had not considered herself a strong battler at all and the fact that she was having to have to make the battle look beautiful made her nervous.

"Here we will post who will be battling and when they will battle!" Pierre began. "And our first battle will be…!"

The faces appeared in the screen. Serena looked at her opponent and wanted the entire world to suck her into the ground. Serena then looked at her opponent and her opponent looked back at her with a smirk.

The crowd was silent at the battle that would begin soon. They had not expected this turn of events.

"Ze first battle will be between performer Serena against performer Paula!" Pierre declared. "We will come back to ze performing after zis short break!"

 **A while later in the Performer's lounge:**

Serena sat in the couch while holding her handkerchief in her hands. She was nervous, no… terrified. She was going up against a complete bully and she had to stand up against her. All that was keeping her calm was focusing on that Poliwag pencil sharpener in the table in front of her. It was just the blue color maybe, or the fact that she grew to love Poliwag after a certain encounter, but she still felt the eerie sadness inside of her eating her away.

All the other performers were sneaking glances at Serena with curiosity as to what she was doing although Serena was just looking at her handkerchief thinking. No one had dared to come up to Serena at all, except one performer.

"Serena, are you alright?" Shauna asked her friend as she sat down next to her. "It's about your next match isn't it?"

Serena in a low voice just said, "Not just that."

Shauna immediately noticed the bigger conflict here, "What happened after… After Ash answered correctly?"

Serena looked at the handkerchief and crushed it in her hands, something Shauna noticed. "I don't want to talk about it…"

Shauna realized the distress at this point and noticed something must have happened after the first round, so she decided to not intrude. "Serena, he won't like it if you gave up now," Shauna said in a reassuring tone.

"Who cares, not like anything could change now, he must hate me now," Serena sighed.

"He does not hate you Serena, he just was going through something painful," Shauna revealed making Serena realize something.

Serena then shot her blue eyes to Shauna's olive eyes and said, "You're right, I can't give up just yet."

Serena then got up and ran to the stage to be early for her match. She did not focus on looking at her surroundings as she passed the lobby and kept going without noticing she dropped something from her pocket.

She then looked over her shoulder and saw Ash. Ash looked back at her with blood red eyes as if he had been crying. Serena then clenched her fists and gritted her teeth and kept running in guilt and rage.

 **With Ash in the lobby (Note that some of the lyrics are different xD… clumsy me):**

Ash was just sitting in the lobby… He had the picture of his mother in his hands and thought about his mother. He thought about how he could have changed things.

"Pikapi?"

"It's ok Pikachu, I know she probably would want me to be happy right now," Ash told his electric friend sitting beside him as Ash scratched his head.

"Cha!" Pikachu cooed at the action.

Ash smiled and looked back at the picture. 'I always needed time on my own, I never thought I, would need you there when I cried.' Ash thought. 'And the days feel like years when i'm alone and the bed where you lie, is made up of your side.'

Ash then heard running footsteps through the lobby and stood up to see Serena running through the lobby to which Ash noticed something drop from her pocket. As soon as Serena looked over her shoulder she stopped. Serena and Ash were making eye contact. Serena then gritted her teeth and clenched her fists while running off in the direction she was going, not noticing what fell from her pocket. When she was out of sight, Ash walked up to it and noticed it was the handkerchief.

Ash picked it up and looked in the direction of the hallway that Serena walked through.

 _When you walk away, i'll take the steps that you take. Can you see how much I need you right now!_

Ash then sat back down and looked at both the handkerchief and the picture of his mother. Two of the most important people to him, represented right there. One that is not alive, the other one probably hates him right now. Ash then thought of a song he learned one day. 'When you're gone, the pieces of my heart are split in two, when you're gone, the face I came to know is missing too, when you're gone I need to feel the beat to always get me through the day… and make it ok…'

"I miss you…" Ash said out of nowhere sparking Pikachu to look at Ash.

"Pi?" Pikachu asked concerned.

"Nothing," Ash said as he petted Pikachu. "Just something I remembered." Ash sat there staring still at the handkerchief and picture of his mother.

 **Serena POV At the Stage Before the Battle:**

"Zis will be a one on one pokemon battle between Serena and Paula, performing is key, the person that performs ze best and wins ze battle will move onto ze next round!" I hear Pierre shout.

I look at Paula and notice that she is looking at me with a smirk. I was intimidated, but I knew I could not give up, I wouldn't until the end!

"Go Abomasnow!" I hear Paula shout. I saw as a large Mamoswine roared ready to battle in front of me. Mamoswine spread a large cloud around the arena and made it hail.

"And Paula goes with Abomasnow who uses it's ability snow warning to make a hail storm!" The announcer shouted making the crowd look in awe.

I grew nervous at the next part though, "Abomasnow!" Paula started while grabbing a stone I recognized from Ash. "MEGA EVOLVE!"

I looked at the transformation with awe, it turns out that the mega evolution really appealed to the audience despite my humiliation of Paula… How am I going to top this?

Suddenly a flash of light came from beside me. "POPPLIO!" It shouted in a confident tone

"Popplio, you want to battle?" I ask the small seal as I kneeled in front of him.

"Popplio!" Popplio nodded to me. I was unsure since Popplio had barely hatched from his egg not to long ago, but I decided to use her since she was confident.

I stood up and looked over to the field and exclaimed a catchphrase that only Ash would say while raising my sore arm, "Popplio! I choose you!"

"Pop Popplio!" Popplio exclaimed proudly as she looked up at Mega Abomasnow. I knew the battle would not be easy since I am using a hatched newborn, but I had to make sure I could win with strength and beauty.

I looked at the ref and the ref lowered his arm, "Battle Begin!"

 **You can play battle music now, Serena (Popplio) vs Paula (Abomasnow):**

"Abomasnow, finish this quick use ice beam!" Paula exclaimed.

I looked over and saw Abomasnow it charging up an ice beam and I knew what to do. "Popplio quick, jump into the air while using water gun with a spin to it!"

"Popplio!" Popplio shouted as she spun and created a water gun vortex. I like to call it counter shield and it appealed to the audience at times.

I saw the ice beam begin to freeze the vortex and decided to counter attack as things were going my way.

"Now slide down the ice with a bubble!" I say with a smile. Popplio listens intently as she uses a bubble to float down while being lead by the ice very smoothly. I knew that I had to hurt Abomasnow to actually win, but I decided to be more passive.

Paula decided it was her turn though, "Abomasnow use ice shard make sure it does not get away!"

"Dodge it!" I shout hoping Popplio can get out of the way. Popplio began to dance while avoiding the ice shard with ease which made me be relieved at how Popplio was not getting hit, but my relief was short lived as the ice shard turned and started following Popplio.

Quickly, an idea sprang into my mind, "Popplio make a bubble and put it in front of you!"

"Popp...LIO!" Popplio shouted as she made a bubble that stopped the ice shard and burst into a lot of sprinkles of bubbles.

From the stands I heard oohs and aahs to my performance. Somehow though, I still needed to take out Abomasnow if I was going to win.

Paula grew desperate at this point and began another counter attack while Popplio was taking damage from hail. "Abomasnow use ice beam on the ground!" Abomasnow used the ice beam thus freezing the entire field which intimidated me. I had no clue how to deal with this kind of field. "Now use wood hammer on the ground and make some pillars!"

"Bomassnoww!" Abomasnow hit the ground with a large green hammer like arm and made large pillars of ice come up from the ground. I instantly knew that I needed to be careful as the crown enjoyed this scene as well.

"Now Abomasnow, use wood hammer and hit the pillars to Popplio!" Paula shouted making me panic.

"Popplio quick use disarming voice! Break the pillars in mid air as they fly for you!" I shout with hope while putting my arm in the air.

"PoppLIIOOOOOOOOOOOO!" the pillars are flying towards Popplio, but Popplio makes a strong voice that cracks and breaks the ice thus making a lot of different sprinkles of ice surround everyone.

"Abomasnow, let's finish this! Use giga impact!" Paula exclaims with agitation.

"This is a performance battle what are you thinking?!" I snap in shock looking at the magnitude of the attack that was coming.

"I don't care, if I faint that stupid seal, then I win… and I get Ash," Paula taunted which made Popplio and my blood boil. At Least no one had heard it except me and Popplio, but the anger was now being reflected on the audience.

 **In the stands:**

"What is Serena doing?" Calem asked. Serena had started moving involuntarily which was concerning everyone.

Abomasnow had started glowing yellow and white and was rushing Popplio so this made Grace worry about Serena and her pokemon. The entire audience was at the edge of their seats.

"Come on Serena…" Grace muttered to herself while clenching her fists at the edge of her seat.

 **With Ash on top of the stands by himself:**

Ash looked at the battle as it was getting intense.

Suddenly, he saw Serena doing wave like motions with her arms and shouting, "I WON'T GIVE UP UNTIL THE END! AARRRRRGGHHH!"

Ash recoiled as he saw this. He noticed an aura envelop Serena and her screaming was clearly audible.

Ash also noticed Popplio have an aura. The incoming giga impact was closer though, but Serena had enough time. "ARTIFICIAL Z MOVE! HYDRO VORTEX!"

Ash stared wide eyed like the rest of the crowd and performers and hosts and everyone witnessing the battle as Popplio made a huge water tornado that enveloped Abomasnow in a large watery explosion that made the Abomasnow fall over instantly to his regular form.

 **Normal POV at the stage:**

Serena could hardly believe what had just happened.

"Abomasnow is unable to battle and Popplio performed better throughout the battle so the winner is Serena!" the ref exclaimed.

Serena ran up to Popplio and hugged her, "Popplio you were amazing!"

The crowd roared and cheered as Serena praised Popplio and Paula recalled Abomasnow and left without a trace and anger in her eyes. Paula had her fists clenched as she left the stage with a bad attitude which relieved many people who thought things would go badly.

"And Serena moves onto ze next round! Ze freestyle round!" Pierre exclaims as the crowd claps and cheers. The sound that drowned out the world for Serena at that moment.

 **A while later in the stage:**

Pierre was alone on stage addressing the masterclass, "And we have our final five performers! Which one will challenge Aria?"

The crowd roared.

"Ze Masterclass freestyle is about to begin!" Pierre added.

 **A/N: Dang, what a chapter, I did say it would be intense so you have to keep that in mind.**

 **If you are still panicking about the approach of this chapter, be patient as the next chapter clarifies some things.**

 **I want to address, that yes, Serena has no Z ring, but why is she able to make an "artificial" Z move do the same as a real one without the crystal or ring? Hehe, only the story will answer that!**

 **Sorry if it looked like Popplio was a male and female at the same time. The seal is supposed to be a female, but I originally had her male because I did not believe she would evolve into a feminine looking pokemon. Also, the story on how Serena got Popplio is for later, don't think she randomly found an Alolan starter in the wild like Ash did Treecko xD!**

 **Anyways, part three will probably conclude the Masterclass, but how will it go? Stay tuned!**

 **This is not the end you will see of mega Abomasnow in this fic. So get used to the concept xD.**

 **Remember to R & R and we will see you all next time! (Thanks for nearly 10k views too!)**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **AmourshippingFan: Well, she managed without Ash this time.**

 **NinjaFang1331: Thanks! I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **Guest 1: Glad you liked it!**


	14. Chapter 14

_Pierre was alone on stage addressing the masterclass, "And we have our final five performers! Which one will challenge Aria?"_

 _The crowd roared._

" _Ze Masterclass freestyle is about to begin!" Pierre added._

 **A/N: Alright guys! We hit it! 10k views thank you so much!**

 **Hey guys, this is the finale of the Masterclass Showcase. Despite Ash's outburst last time, he knows he should not have snapped at Serena when she was just trying to help.**

 **Also, just keep in mind that the performances are kind off short xD. I am better at writing battles so it is a new thing for me to write performances, but since I like torturing my favorite characters in this story, I hope I meet the expectations of a good emotional perspective.**

 **How will Ash fix things? How will things end? Stay tuned!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 14- Masterclass Victory! Serena's Greatest Decisive Performance!

 **Ash POV at the top of the stands with Pikachu:**

I look at the rodent in my shoulder and he looks at me with a smile. "Pikachu, why did I snap at her?" I ask my friend.

"Pika pi pikachu," Pikachu told me while looking over at the stage.

I looked over to the stage and noticed the five performers that were involved in the finals of the masterclass. One of them was the one I was rooting for the most… Obviously Serena, but her competition was stiff. I look at the names and pictures of the performers.

One was Shauna, she was a big rival of Serena, but also her best friend. I have a feeling that Serena can win with confidence if she puts everything into it.

The second performer was a brunette girl, in the picture she was depicted as having a green bandana on her head. Still, she had a white dress during the masterclass. She was a top coordinator from Hoenn called May. She intimidated me a little bit as she was able to easily win her battle in the second round and had won the grand festival in Hoenn.

Same thing with the fourth performer. She knew May very well, but had blue hair. She was Dawn, another top coordinator that was from Sinnoh this time. She was also a large threat since she had won the grand festival in Sinnoh.

Likewise, the last girl had a weird earring which I detected as being a keystone. She had blond hair and was very tall. Her name was Astrid and she had gone through the second round through mega evolution. I do think Serena can beat her, but we will have to see. Now that I think about it, I think I battles against Astrid once, but Sceptile, back then a Grovyle, actually lost against her mega Absol… Now _I_ want a rematch...

 **Stands:**

"This will be a close one," Tierno said calmly. "I have a feeling either Serena or Shauna will make us proud."

Calem looked at Tierno with enthusiasm, but simply added, "I know right? But Shauna will totally win!"

"Haha, if Ash was here to hear that," Trevor laughed. "He would flip out on you at that point!"

Grace attentively listened as she tried to comprehend why Ash would be nervous if Calem claimed that Shauna would win. The only conclusion Grace had was that Ash was supporting Serena, but the fact that Ash would only support Serena that way and by what he said before, Grace saw Ash differently that most boys.

The crowd roared throughout the stands as the performers stepped out into the stage. Everyone was getting prepared for the next moment.

 **Stage:**

Pierre was standing up tall with his staff and Klefki. Pierre then looked at the crowd and claimed: "Look very well at zis last batch of performers! One will challenge Aria for her title of Kalos Queen. In zee end, you will choose ze outcome. So… for ze freestyle round we will individually see all the performances and choose the best one to challenge Aria!"

Serena, Shauna, May, Dawn and Astrid all stood tall as everyone was cheering for them.

 **Shauna POV:**

I made it this far, I will do my best and get farther than anyone has before. I know I can win.

 **May POV:**

This is very difficult, I have a feeling my rivals will be very strong, but I will manage to pull out on top, I know I can!

 **Dawn POV:**

Everyone is very fired up, I hope I can dazzle the audience. I need to try my best and not worry. I made it this far, so I am happy.

 **Astrid POV:**

I may be a battler, but I made it this far so I am sure I can do great. As long as I can keep my cool and use what is up my sleeve I can win!

 **Serena POV:**

Ash, I am sorry for yelling at you, but please, at least watch me perform, I need you here for me!

" _There is something you definitely lack, if you don't know what it is, then you won't be able to defeat Aria…"_ These words echoed through my mind as a grab my sore arm and hide it behind my back.

ARGH I have to stay strong! I don't care about my wellbeing I can do this!

 **A little later on stage:**

"Welcome ze first performer, Astrid!" Pierre exclaimed.

Astrid stood tall in her purple dress. Next to her was an Absol and a Meowstic. She started off by making acrobatic backflips across stage while Meowstic controlled her with psychic.

"Use psycho cut!" Astrid called out as she danced around Absol who shot a psycho cut straight up. "Now use thunder wave!" Meowstic shot upwards a wave of electricity that caused the crowd to roar in excitement.

Astrid then looked at the crowd with confidence as she made more backflips among her pokemon that were all elevated through psychic **(I know Absol is a dark type lmao just let it slide)**.

"Time to take this to the next level! ABSOL Mega Evolve!" Astrid shouted. Absol started to glow making the audience stare in awe as Absol gained wings and started to run around with more speed. "Now use ice beam!"

Absol show out an ice beam and made pillars of ice. Then Astrid commanded her Meowstic to use psychic to destroy them in an array of magic.

"Finished!" Astrid shouted as she looked at the public while making the crowd roar in approval.

 **Next performance:**

"Welcome to ze stage, Dawn!" Pierre exclaimed with enthusiasm as the blue haired girl popped up on stage along with Piplup and Quilava.

"Piplup use whirlpool!" Dawn commanded as Piplup started to use whirlpool engulfing her and Quilava. "Now Quilava use flame wheel!"

"Quil...LAVA!" Quilava began to circle around the giant vortex by using flame wheel and caused the entire audience to look with awe and cheer at the spectacle.

"Now use bubble beam! Quilava counter it with fire blast!" Dawn exclaimed. The two pokemon shot their attacks and collided causing an explosion that revealed stars and bubbles flowing all over the audience.

"Let's finish this," Dawn declared as she danced across the stage. "Quilava use eruption! Piplup go for a strong hydro pump!"

"QUILAVA!" Quilava shouted as he made molten rocks start to fall from the sky. Piplup then destroyed the rocks with hydro pump causing a large amount of steam to appear among the stage and stands.

When the steam cleared you could see Dawn with her pokemon. "That's it!" Dawn shouted as the crowd clapped and cheered.

 **Next performance:**

"Welcome May to ze stage!" Pierre shouted as the crowd started watching as the brunette girl came up to the stage with a Blaziken and a Beautifly.

"Go Beautifly, use sweet scent!" May commanded as Beautifly made the stage completely hazy with a red and pink color. "Now Blaziken use flamethrower!"

Blaziken fired off a flamethrower up at the roof and caused a nice explosion that had fire sparkles.

May then appeared dancing with Blaziken amusing the audience. Beautifly was using psybeam attempting to hit the dodging pair which looked very intense for the audience, but added more special effect.

"Blaziken, let's finish this! Beautifly go for a gust!" May exclaimed. "Blaziken use flamethrower on the ground!"

May and her Pokemon then began to float and then they touched down with a pose after spinning a couple of times. "Finished!" May exclaimed.

The crowd was amused as well showing their appreciation through the cheering and clapping.

 **Shauna's Performance:**

"Welcome to ze stage, ze and only Shauna!" Pierre exclaimed as he walked off the stage. Shauna appeared before the crowd before everyone and the cheers were loud, but one that made Shauna feel happy was:

"GO SHAUNA YOU CAN DO IT!" Calem exclaimed through the crowd making Shauna blush. Right beside her was Venusaur and Tropius.

Shauna then got on Tropius and began to ride it around the stage and towards the stands. Shauna was commanding Tropius to use gust causing the crowd to enjoy the gust of wind.

"Now Venusaur use Frenzy Plant!" Shauna exclaimed.

"Venusaur!" Venusaur shouted as it shot the large plant in front of him just in time to stop in front of the crowd making the entire stage be covered in plants.

Shauna was dancing up and down the plants as she decided to pull of a hard move next, "Venusaur use leaf storm on me!" Venusaur followed the command and made Shauna rise into the sky with leafs around her making the crowd cheer.

Then leaf storm ended and Shauna landed while winking one eye and said, "Finished!"

 **Serena POV:**

I look over to my side and see Floette and Popplio beside me. I decided to make Popplio come along with me as she was a strong and energetic performer. Suddenly, I hear the words:

"Last but not least, Performer Serena!" I hear Pierre shout as the floor behind me began to move upwards. Suddenly I am met by the scene of many people watching me and clapping as I finally am able to begin performing.

I look up and smile while inhaling and exhaling.

 **Play Dori Dori's "Dream Power" here**!

"Floette use misty terrain!" I shout. I see the entire ground around me become misty and pink, just the color I needed. "Now Popplio, encase us in a bubble!"

I hug Popplio in my arms as Popplio created a bubble that encased me. I could see the thin lining of the bubble as I started to float making the audience roar in approval.

"Floette use fairy wind!" I shout. Floette goes around with fairy wind thus pushing me near the stands. I got an eyeful of Calem, Trevor, Tierno, and Mom smiling at me:

… But where was Ash?

I frowned, but I remembered to not give up. "Floette use moonblast!"

Floette used moonblast at the bubble that was now on top of the stage and I decided to unleash Popplio.

"Popplio use water gun counter shield!" I shout as Popplio starts spinning and bursting the bubble while I lightly touch the ground with my feet. The explosion above me is beautiful as I see the water and mist combine.

My two pokemon then land beside me and we start dancing as they hop in and out of me. Then, I grab Popplio and toss him into the sky as Floette used fairy wind to get us all airborne.

"Floette use moonblast! Popplio water gun!" I exclaim with a smile.

The moves collide and the other pokemon fall to the ground harmlessly as I touch the ground on my legs and just barely touched the ground with my hurting arm which hurt a lot. Other than that, I ignored the pain and put my arm out into the sky while saying: "TADA!"

The crowd instantly drowned out my thoughts as I could hardly hear myself think. Just then the other performers came to the stage as well.

Pierre came up to the microphone and I grew nervous…

This is it, the final round, who will go to challenge Aria?

Pierre then started to talk, "Now it is time for ze votes to begin! Adjust your colors to ze person that you think performed best! Ready?"

I looked around and saw the colors of the rainbow staring back at me from the stands. I grew nervous during the count to three in Kalosian.

"Un!"

"Deux!"

"Trois!"

 **Ash POV:**

I look over at the colored orbs that start flowing. The pink ones for Serena, green for Shauna, blue for Dawn, yellow for May and Purple for Astrid.

I look at my side and notice I have no glowlight to cast my vote. "OH SH*T!"

"Pikapika!" Pikachu told me as we ran as fast as we could to get to the lobby. When we reached the lobby, I looked around the rows of couches. One of the couches had a blank glowlight lying on top of it. Perfect. I got the random glowlight in the middle of the room and then I then run into the auditorium bursting through the doors and notice that the orbs are done flowing. I click on "pink" and threw the glowlight towards the stage with all my might praying that it went through.

 **Serena POV:**

The colors started flowing from everywhere in the stage followed by the colors from people voting from outside of the Tripokalon coming from the floor in front of the stage.

After a while, all the colors stopped. Then suddenly: " _CLANK"_ a random glowlight lands in the stage in front of me and then a pink orb came out. The orb slowly flew in front of my face and then went down to my dress where it got absorbed into the key in my dress and everyone turned in my direction confused.

I looked over at the stands and I saw him. _Ash_ , standing there with Pikachu with a smile and panting hard like if he had just ran a marathon. He was standing there in the middle of the passage in the stands looking at me and gave me a "thumbs up". Did he actually not hate me at all?

I felt my cheeks burn a little, but i also felt relieved that he still saw my performance.

My thoughts were drowned out by Pierre's Voice: "And ze performer that challenges Aria will be…"

I close my eyes and feel nervous. My heart pounding and my legs feeling like if they were about to give out.

Suddenly, I felt a large warm sensation through my eyelids. The crowd roared and I could barely hear anything, but I still did in the end.

I open them to not believe what I was hearing, "Performer Serena won by _one_ vote!"

I teared up and looked at my pokemon. "Thank you guys," I muttered as I hugged them.

 **At the stands:**

"Aww… Shauna lost," Tierno said.

"It's ok, her journey is just beginning," Calem replied as he smiled proud of Shauna.

Grace couldn't hold it anymore and stood up, "You see Serena, she's my girl! That's my baby!"

Ash then came up and said, "And your baby will push through to learn more."

"Ash!" Everyone shouted.

"I told you Calem," Ash smirked. "Don't underestimate Serena!"

"Hehe, he got you there," Trevor replied.

"Ash, by any chance…" Grace started.

"Yea?" Ash encouraged.

"Where you the one that threw the glowlight?" Grace asked.

"H-how did you know?" Ash stuttered as Grace gave Ash a knowing look.

"Something in Serena's face told me," Grace replied simply while remembering Serena's slight blush at looking from where the glowlight came.

 **At the lounge still Serena POV:**

All the girls looked at me and congratulated me. They all started wishing me good luck and gave me ideas for my performance against Aria. I felt thankful, but I had already had my routine planned out.

"Serena…" Shauna started as she looked at me. She like some of the other girls had tears in her eyes. Shauna then surprised me by hugging me. "Serena win this for us I know you can do it!"

"Shauna…" I reply unsure. I then became confident and pulled her away so we can make eye contact. "I will do my best Shauna!"

 **A little later:**

It was time for me against Aria, I wanted to talk with Ash before the performance, but I wasn't able to find him or the others so I had stuck with Shauna.

Shauna though, went to the stands with the others so I was alone. I was nervous as hell, but I needed to pull through. I went to a safe spot where u was alone and took out four pokeballs.

"Braixen!"

"Sylveon!"

"Pop popplio!"

"Floette!"

"Hey guys," I tell my Pokemon. "I just want to say thank you, we made it this far and I believe we can be happy about how well we did. So, for now let's focus in doing our best!"

Everyone lets out a battle cry and put out a paw, finn, flower, and branch. I knew I could do it and nothing, not even my sore arm would stand in the way of me trying my full effort.

 **In the stands:**

Ash was sitting with Pikachu next to Grace. Grace was curious as to what happened after Ash and Serena had left the stage before. "Ash, are you ok?"

Ash put his hand in his pocket and felt a piece of cloth which he recognized as the handkerchief. "No, actually I… I may have snapped at Serena after I answered and put her through and now I feel terrible."

Grace looked at Ash sympathetically and put a hand on his shoulder. "Serena is very forgiving and she values you a lot, I know so. Go talk to her when you have the chance and maybe you can fix things."

Ash smiled and nodded as he knew he would have to do the right thing.

Suddenly, the stage lit up and Serena was seen walking with her four pokemon to center stage. She looked determined and ready to win as the crowd roared at her approval.

Ash smiled, but he noticed her acting weird with her right arm, but Ash shook it off.

"It's starting!" Tierno exclaimed.

"Good luck Serena!" Trevor shouted.

"Do your hardest Serena!" Calem yelled.

Grace stood up with a powerful tone and exclaimed, "Make momma proud Serena!"

"PIKA PIKA PIKAPI!"

Ash stood up next to Grace and looked at Serena, "Serena… Don't give up until the end!"

 **With Serena on Stage**

"Serena… Don't give up until the end!" a voice pierced through the cheering crowd making Serena get a pink glint in her cheeks. Serena smiled, she knew what she had to do to win and how to perform.

Serena looked over to her pokemon and nodded as Pierre introduced her. "Allow me to present, ze person zat will challenge Aria to be Kalos Queen, Serena!"

The crowd cheered Serena on as Pierre and his Klefki walked off stage leaving Serena alone.

Serena had her favorite song come on as she felt the rhythm. The song being: **Dream Power Dori Dori (THIS IS THE QUEUE PLAY IT!)**

Serena tapped her foot to the sound of the beat at the beginning and when the electric guitar played the beginning of the music, Serena and her pokemon began to dance side to side.

Once the singer began to sing, Serena grabbed Braixen's wand and started using flamethrower and drew a large heart among the stage while fire streaked around her smiling face with grace showing off her internal fire.

Serena then ordered Sylveon to use fairy wind and make her fly into the sky. Popplio used her bubble to float up into the sky while using a water gun counter shield under Serena making Serena look like she was on top of a vortex.

"Floette now use moonblast while Braixen use fire blast!" Serena exclaimed as Braixen and Floette launched their attacks and making the prongs turn into pedals of a flower with a pink centerpiece. This made the crowd roar.

"Now Sylveon use your feelers to make me soar!" Serena ordered while smiling.

"VEONNN!" Sylveon sang as she grabbed Serena with her feelers and used fairy wind to the point that Serena was floating around the stands making the crowd happy.

"Now Braixen fire blast and psychic at the same time!" Serena demanded as Braixen jumped into the sky and engulfed Serena in flames while using psychic to protect Serena. The crowd stood wide mouthed at this as Serena and her pokemon began to fly into the sky.

"Let's finish this!" Serena exclaimed while making wave patterns with her arms. "Z Move! HYDRO VORTEX!"

"POPPPP...LIOOO!" Popplio exclaimed as he unleashed a large water vortex under him.

"Now use fire blast and fairy wind!" Serena exclaimed as Sylveon and Floette used Fairy wind into the vortex amazing everyone as Braixen added in an extra fire blast. Then the vortex exploded into pink, orange and blue particles sprinkling all over the audience.

Serena was then being lowered towards the ground face first slowly and she put her hand out to stop her. All of her pokemon did the same and did well, but when Serena landed she landed in her hurt arm.

Serena winced in the searing pain, but started falling forward.

Sylveon decided to come in and rescue Serena as she swung her feelers to front flip Serena into a hero posicion.

"TADA!" Serena screamed while smiling. 'I did everything I possibly could!' Serena thought to herself as the crowd stood up and cheered on for Serena drowning any sound Serena has ever heard before.

 **In the stands:**

"YEA THAT WAS AWESOME!" Tierno shouted.

"Truly amazing!" Shauna shouted. She was sitting with Calem and had came in time to see Serena perform in the finals.

"You were great!" Calem and Trevor shouted in unison.

"Serena I am so proud!" Grace exclaimed into the cheers and clapping.

"PIKAPI!" Pikachu shouted with enthusiasm.

"Serena that was amazing!" Ash exclaimed. Ash was happy, but he was also worried about something… He noticed Serena's hurt arm.

 **Back on Stage:**

"Now welcome your reigning Kalos Queen, Aria!" Pierre shouted as he introduced a magenta haired girl that stepped in through the doors in the back of the stage. She had a Delphox, Spritzee and Vivillon beside her.

Serena noticed how much attention got through her elegant movement to the music. She watched in awe as Aria was picked up by her Vivillon to later use charge beam and solar beam to combine with a fire blast to make an amazing star design.

Serena then noticed Aria's smile, something that Serena knew she had to work on. 'Now I know what I lack… Something to give!' Serena thought as she smiled at Aria's performance.

Elegantly, Aria concluded her performance and made the crowd roar very loudly for Aria.

...Unbeknownst to Serena… Serena was the one that made others smile more in the end.

 **A little later:**

"Are you ready to vote? Remember to choose ze performer that you think performed best," Pierre instructed as she presented the two performers in front of her. All of them with their pokemon beside them and they all had great amount of determination.

"Will Aria defend her title, or will Serena be crowned ze new Kalos Queen? We will find out in…" Pierre started.

"UN!" the crowd started.

"DEUX!" The crowd chanted again.

"TROIS!" Everyone exclaimed as the lights started making orbs that flowed into the performer's keys. It was green for Aria and pink for Serena.

Suddenly, all of the orbs from outside the tripokalon got added into the mix.

"Zis has been a world record of votes, we have had at least three million votes zis time! Give yourselves a round of applause!" Pierre shouted as everyone clapped. "Now ze winner is…"

The light showed on one performer and the crowd began to roar in approval at the Kalos Queen. "Aira!" Pierre shouted.

Serena smiled even though she lost and looked at her pokemon. She hugged them showing great appreciation for their work and dedication to making things possible.

Aria was crowned a tiara that Klefki held on his key chain. Aria was also given a bouquet of flowers to symbolize her winning.

Aria walked up to Serena as the crowd cheered and said while extending her arm, "That was fun we should do it again sometime!"

Serena grabbed her hand with both of hers and shook it, "Yes and when we do, I will totally win!"

With that, the showcase closed with Serena and her pokemon along with Aria and her pokemon waving at the roaring audience. There were no winners and losers in the end… There was just two amazing performers celebrating the conclusion of being able to perform for people to smile.

 **At a meeting later at undisclosed location:**

"What happened?" An irritated Aria asked Diantha who had asked her to sit in front of her.

"Tell me, that challenger you performed against in the end…What did you think of her performance?" Diantha asked coldly as she picked up a cup of coffee and sipped it.

Aria looked at the ground and thought for a second, "Her performance was amazing! It was beautiful and graceful, honestly I think it could have gotten more votes than it had."

Diantha looked at Aria seriously and told her this, "Well it did, in fact, I made it so that one third of the of the votes for her were counted for you instead."

Aria looked shocked… She would have lost if things would have been done differently. Aria stood up and hit her fist into the table, "WHY?! Why did you RIG IT!"

Diantha stood up and put a hand on Aria's shoulder and told her to relax. Diantha then came up and explained her reasoning, "I talked with Olympia the other day, and she said that the girl… Serena was her name… She has a special connection with someone I have been watching closely. Olympia stated that danger is coming and that if Serena is Kalos Queen, she won't do her role to protect Kalos." Diantha then looked at Aria. "Do not give up the title, it will be beneficial for the safety of our region that Serena remains close to my subject."

Diantha then got up and started walking to the door catching Aria's attention, "Where are you going?"

"I have to battle this person… I have to see the power of his spirit…" Diantha said coldly as she left the room leaving Aria alone.

"So… Serena is the real Kalos Queen…" Aria muttered in disbelief.

 **Later at the lobby:**

"Serena, you came so close, I am proud of you," Grace told her daughter.

"Thank you mom," Serena blushed a bit.

"Serena, I'm going to go to sleep," Shauna said. "Let's make this a new beginning for us!"

"Yes!" Serena shouted as she shook Shauna's hand.

"Same here Serena… and Ash, when we can we have a battle, right?" Calem asked with a smirk.

"You got that right bro!" Ash replied smirking as well.

"We're leaving too, bye!" Tierno and Trevor said as they left the lobby after congratulating Serena.

Shauna and Calem left through the door and Grace was also leaving when Grace turned around and said, "Also, Serena take care of yourself, love you!"

"Love you too mom," Serena replied as her mother left the tripokalon.

It was Ash and Serena alone all over again. Pikachu decided it would be best to leave the two to talk alone so he walked to a corner and eavesdrop (Clever Pikachu).

Serena sat down in a bench and looked down. She had many thoughts going through her head about what was next for her.

Serena then felt a hand in her shoulder and looked up to find Ash that sat next to her.

"Serena, how's your arm?" Ash asked in concern as he recalled what happened when Serena was performing.

"H-how do you know?" Serena asked surprised at Ash's discovery.

"I saw how you acted with it, here let me help," Ash said as he took out _the handkerchief_ from his pocket to help Serena. Unbeknownst to him, something else fell out.

"Ash…" Serena said while blushing at Ash wrapping the handkerchief on Serena's hurt hand. "Thank you…"

"No problem," Ash replied with a warm smile. "How are you feeling about today?"

"I am frustrated, but I think I can learn and become a better performer and thanks to my friends I can receive support to later give it in performances. I noticed how much my friends mean to me when it comes to helping me make something for others to be motivated to do something as well…" Serena then noticed something and picked it up… _The picture of Ash's mom_. "Ash… who is she?"

"My… mom…" Ash choked in his words.

Serena stared in awe and looked at Ash with a sympathetic smile, "Ash... she is beautiful. She has your eyes and the look of compassion."

Ash stared in awe at how Serena understood him and was able to learn what his mother was like in seconds.

"You hit that description dead on," Ash replied. "Look Serena, about earlier today… I am sorry I snapped at you."

"No Ash, don't apologize, I should have not tried to enter your bottled up emotions like that, i'm sorry," Serena replied looking down. "I know you miss your mother and that your father caused this pain to you, I should not have tried to force you out of it."

"It's ok Serena," Ash said while wrapping his hand around Serena. "Come on, you look exhausted, let's go to the pokemon center to rest."

Serena nodded and Pikachu got on Ash's shoulder as Ash walked Serena back to the pokemon center… The same way he did at camp years ago.

 **A/N: Wait… SERENA ACTUALLY F****** WON? YES! And this will be addressed in the future! Long, but symbolic chapter though, so I hope you enjoyed it!**

 **Tell me what you thought! (By the way, did you like how I added in some other Pokegirls? I actually had no clue who to make Serena's other rivals, so I added them in! Maybe you guys may expect to see them in the future too as I may plan roles for them!)**

 **Also, the amourshipping hint in the end… Wow their relationship is growing and hitting bumps, but something tells me there will be another bump later on that will have to be repaired through more than just an apology… IDK, I mean, I could be lying or… not? Hehe, only I know, but hinting doesn't help doesn't it?**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **NinjaFang1331: Thanks! Glad you are enjoying things up until now!**

 **Guest 1: Mhm, I wanted Serena to have a rival battle with her. She may come in later in the story, but for now, she will back off a bit.**

 **SilverMoon1912: Haha, good analogy! I am glad you liked it!**

 **Rst64tlc: That will be answered in a future chapter. Maybe Ash will kick her ass in the future, but for now, we will make it so that Serena does all of the work.**

 **Wes27: Like I said before, I am not trying to follow the story of the anime… So she lost AND WON at the same time… Thanks Diantha! Anyways, this will be addressed in the future, so make sure that you stay tuned for the reveal. I guess you were not expecting that to happen!**

 **Guest 2: Alright bro! I will keep it all up, but you better stay supporting the ship ;)!**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: So the masterclass has finished and it is time for the continuation of the story! Ash and Calem need to get their badge! What will happen now?**

 **I wanted to make this a heavy battle chapter to make it unique so yeah! Now we get to see some Frogadier and Pikachu in action!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 15- On route to Snowbelle! Ash vs Calem! An electric surprise!

 **The next morning with the gang outside the pokemon center:**

Grace had already left to Vaniville Town and now it was just Ash, Serena, Calem, Shauna, Trevor and Tierno that were left.

"So what are you guys going to do now?" Tierno asked the group.

"I am going to go get my last badge!" Ash shouted while pumping his fist.

"Me too!" Calem exclaimed while smirking.

Serena and Shauna both smiled at the determination of the boys. Suddenly, Serena spoke up, "I actually am going to go to Snowbelle too, but Shauna and I have some things we would like to practice here in Glorio."

Shauna looked at Serena and then back at Calem and Ash, "I will be at Lumiose to get ready for the league after Serena and I finish our practicing! For now good bye!"

"Bye Serena and Shauna, hope to see you at Snowbelle!" Ash said with a smile as the two girls began to walk back into the pokemon center.

"Pika pikachu!" Pikachu shouted as well.

Serena then spoke up, "I will see you there Ash, I can't miss your next gym battle!"

"Of course you can't, see you there!" Ash exclaimed. The girls door to the pokemon center then shut and the others saw as the outlines of Serena and Shauna left the doorway and into what they needed to do in the pokemon center.

"Well, Trevs and I are going to go to Lumiose and train extra hard for the league!" Tierno shouted with excitement as he shot a pose to the others.

"We sure are, you guys better get your last badges soon!" Trevor responded with a smirk. "So for now, see you guys later."

Then, Tierno took out a Swana while Trevor took out a Charizard. Both trainers got on their pokemon and flew off thus leaving Ash and Calem alone. Calem and Ash had not battled in a while and they both felt like they needed to battle again.

"So Calem, how about a one on one?" Ash asked as they walked to separate ends of a practice field that they saw next to the pokemon center.

"You're on Ash!" Calem replied while taking out a pokeball and bobbing it in his hand. "I am ready for anything that you have to throw at me!"

"Ok then, here goes!" Ash exclaimed as he decided on what pokemon he wanted to use. Ash took out a pokeball and threw it revealing the pokemon he had promised would become stronger with. "Frogadier, I choose you!"

"Dier froga!" Frogadier said as he looked at Calem with a battle stance with crossed arms and a determined face.

Calem smirked while taking the pokeball he was bobbing in his hand and throwing it into the sky while yelling, "Gallade let's battle!" The pokeball opened and flashed a collection of bright energy that then took the form of a bipedal pokemon with blades in his hands and a green tuft on his head. This pokemon put his blades on his hits and then put them at his sides in battle stance.

"Gallade!" Gallade shouted with excitement as he looked at his opponent. Gallade and Frogadier had been rivals for a long time and their close ranged attacks really assured that the two have become increasingly powerful from battling each other.

 **Battle Music Start, Ash (Frogadier) vs Calem (Gallade):**

"Gallade start things off by using leaf blade!" Calem ordered while putting his hand out and a very strong commanding tone.

"Galll...ADE!" Gallade shouted as his blades glew green and he charged Frogadier. Frogadier did not look dazed by any chance at the attack that came to him.

"Frogadier use cut!" Ash ordered with excitement while putting his open hand out. Frogadier got out his white kunais and charged Gallade. As Ash looked at the white blades, he saw them glisten blue and then turn white again as the moves collided. Frogadier and Gallade stayed in that stalemate for awhile in which sparks flew in between the white and green blades, but then the two bipedal pokemon separated to be in front of their trainers.

"Gallade use close combat!" Calem shouted. Gallade charged Frogadier as he started punching very fast, but Ash knew how to counter this from the last time they had battles.

"Frogadier use aerial ace on his joints!" Ash retaliated while pumping his fist. Frogadier made his limbs glow white and dodged the incoming physical beatdown and then hit Gallade in the shoulder girdle and the knee joint thus stopping the dangerous attack. This caused Gallade to stumble back and give out a smirk and battle cry in front of his trainer. Ash then saw an opportunity, so he put his right hand into the sky and gave the following command: "Now Frogadier, use water pulse!"

"Don't let it get away with it, use psycho cut and break the sphere!" Calem shouted with a smirk knowing very well how to counter the sphere of aquatic energy. Gallade instantly shot out the purple blade thus causing the water pulse to explode in mid air. Calem then found his chance to strike, "Now hit it with leaf blade again!"

"Double team!" Ash commanded while pumping his fist.

"Froga, Froga, Froga," Frogadier shouted as he turned into a lot of decoys that tried to confuse Gallade. The copies then covered most of Ash's side of the field to which Ash smirked in satisfaction from his increased evasion.

Calem smirked and pulled out his trump card, "Now, take them all out with stone edge!"

"Galll… ADE!" Gallade shouted as he punched the ground making rocks come out from the ground and penetrate the decoys. The decoys all went down as soon as the stone edge hit them, but one Frogadier avoided it. Calem noticed this and reacted, "Use leaf blade and hit all of the rocks back at him using close combat!"

Gallade's hands glew a green color and sliced through the rocks making then small and then with close combat managed to make the rocks fly towards Frogadier in incredible speed like bullets coming out of a machine gun.

Frogadier had not chance in dodging and took the damage. Ash though, for some odd reason he recoiled, but not of shock: Pain. 'Why did this hurt?' Ash asked himself. But Ash still did not give up and swung his arm across his chest with a fist formed on his hand, "Frogadier use your frubbles to stop his hands from punching any more rocks!"

"Froga...DIER!" Frogadier shouted as he launched the frubbles and encased the hands like handcuffs. Gallade struggled to get out of the handcuffs and ended up falling to his knees tired. This was the opening Ash needed as Calem's pokemon seemed like it was unable to continue attacking because of the trap he was in.

"Looks like I can finish this now," Ash told himself before narrowing his eyes and thinking of the right move to finish this battle off. "Frogadier use water pulse!" Ash exclaimed while putting out his fist. Frogadier charged up a large sphere of water and shot it towards the struggling Gallade.

Calem smirked as he saw a chance to get out of the trap he was in., "Gallade, dodge it by jumping up and use leaf blade on the frubbles!"

"galll...ADEEEEEEE!" Gallade used every ounce of his energy to jump into the sky, the water pulse kept going and hit the ground below Gallade thus not causing harm. Then in the air, Gallade used leaf blade to free himself from the grip of the frubbles with his green blades. Then, he charged Frogadier with his amazing speed and superior height advantage.

"What?!" Ash recoiled in shock, but regained composure. "Use cut!" Ash commanded quickly as he put his fist out.

The attacks collided in mid air again, and just like before it ended in a stalemate. Calem though, he smirked at the sight of the collision, "Use psycho cut with your free hand!"

Gallade's free hand glowed purple and threw a blade that made Frogadier fall to the ground. Frogadier got up slowly, but very weakened from the STAB that Gallade had in that attack. "Frogadier are you alright?" Ash asked.

"Dier… Froga...DIER!"

"Good, now run and use double team!" Ash exclaimed. Frogadier ran and jumped into the air and split into many forms that surrounded Gallade. This was the position Ash would like to have Frogadier have in order to win. "Now Frogadier, use aerial ace!"

Calem recoiled, but knew what he had to do. As he watched the aquatic frog's limbs glow white and charged, he had a plan that would stop the attack from harming him.

"Jump up while using using leaf blade and spinning!" Calem exclaimed while pumping his fist.

"Gall...ADEEE!" Gallade shouted as he spun like a top with green blades.

Frogadier got hit and fell back in front of Ash. Ash gritted his teeth, he had to do something. "Frogadier use water pulse!" Frogadier began charging his attack furiously. Ash was not expecting to have such a hard time specially after the experience he and Frogadier got after the battle against Olympia.

"Froga…" Frogadier shouted as he made the water sphere in his hands grow in size. Suddenly, Frogadier let his large water pulse fly and set it to go at an amazing speed.

Calem saw the potential danger and shouted for his Gallade, "Use stone edge!"

The barrage of rocks crossed with the sphere of water and both attacks hit their targets with ease causing a large explosion between the pokemon. Ash and Calem gritted their teeths at what may have happened.

Gallade stood up and barely lost his balance while looking at his standing opponent Frogadier.

Ash then felt his entire body ache and he fell over as Frogadier mimicked his trainer. Both of them fell over breathing heavily and unable to continue battling.

They had lost.

"Pikapi?" Pikachu asked Ash in worry at the sudden fall.

Ash had his eyes shadowed over his hat, the fact that he had promised Frogadier that they would become stronger haunted him. He turned back to Pikachu and faked a toothy grin saying, "Calem really was great!"

"Pika…" Pikachu sighed thinking Ash was ok. Ash the walked up to Frogadier and helped him up.

"Hey Frogadier, are you ok?" Ash asked.

"Froga…" Frogadier replied a little salty from the battle still knowing he gave it his all.

"Ash, how is Frogadier?" Calem asked Ash as he walked up to them and helped the duo stand up.

"We will be fine, thanks," Ash said.

"Well Ash, I am going to go to Snowbelle straight away, I hope you can get there fine!" Calem said as he revealed his Talonflame.

"I will Calem, take care," Ash replied, but just as Calem was about to get on, Ash spoke up once more, "Hey Calem?"

"Yea?" Calem asked with a slight quirk of his eyebrow.

Ash sighed as he then looked at Calem with a determined face and declared, "Let's battle again sometime, preferably the Kalos League, and let's settle our differences there."

"You got it," Calem replied as he shook Ash's hand briefly before turning back to his fire and flying type pokemon and hoping on its back. "I will see you later Ash, I better hope to see you at Lumiose City after we both defeat the Snowbelle gym." Calem then took off on his Talonflame into the bright blue sky and Ash along with Frogadier watched in awe as the jet black haired trainer disappeared into the sky as a small spec.

Ash then looked at Frogadier and said, "We will get another shot, don't worry."

"Froga…" Frogadier said with a slightly sad tone as Ash took out Frogadier's pokeball.

"Here, you look tired take a good rest so that Nurse Joy can look at you," Ash said as he recalled Frogadier. Ash then walked into the pokemon center and talked with Nurse Joy. "Can you heal this pokemon please?"

"Sure thing, give me a second," Joy replied taking Ash's pokeball. In the meantime Ash and Pikachu went to sit in a couch to think. Serena and Shauna were not around anymore in the pokemon center. Ash probably thought they left to go train somewhere else.

"What will my strategy be for the Snowbelle City Gym?" Ash asked himself while ruffling a hand through his hair.

"Pika… PIKA PIKA!" Pikachu replied pointing at himself in a prideful way.

Ash giggled and looked at Pikachu, "We'll see, I mean you were in all the other gym battles except this last one," Ash replied as he remembered his gym battles. He remembered how Pikachu stared in his first, second and third gyms. How Pikachu did good work in the fourth for Sceptile, then a Grovyle to finish it off, his fifth one including how Goodra took out that Luxray with an incredible bide, how Noivern took out Sylveon at Laverre city despite the disadvantage, how during his seventh badge Charizard, then a Charmeleon and Frogadier landed good hits, but it was mostly equal in participation… As of now, go to for raw power had to be Charizard, but something about Frogadier puzzled him.

 _Ding dong ding dong ding dong dang!_

The bell sounded as Nurse Joy gave Ash his pokeball back. "Thanks Nurse Joy," Ash said as he took in the pokeball and put it in his belt. After that, Ash and Pikachu embarked in a road to Snowbelle City where he would find himself winning his next badge!

As Ash walked through the dirt path, he saw a lot of pokemon through the sides of the field, they were nice and soft. The day was sunny and the wind was calm as Ash noticed some fletchlings flying overhead.

 **After a couple hours of walking:**

After a couple of hours, Ash noticed a person get in his way. He had an umbrella but had green hair and a very green attire with a rain coat. He then spoke up, "I see that's a keystone, do you mind having a battle?.. Ooh, you're the trainer with that Sceptile, can you show me your skills in battle?!" This man exclaimed as he threw out a Venusaur.

Ash smirked at the sight of the challenge and pointed to the sky, "Pikachu I choose you!"

"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed as he landed in front of Ash while gathering electricity.

The man grew puzzled seeing his opponent's choice, "But Pikachu can't mega evolve…"

Ash smirked while pumping his fist,"Of course he can't, but he doesn't need it to win!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu agreed while taunting the Venusaur with his "come at me" sign.

 **Battle Music Begin, Ash (Pikachu) vs Man (Venusaur):**

"Alright then," the man said as he raised his hand and hit it towards the ground. "Use Frenzy Plant!" Venusaur raised his front legs and then slammed them on the ground causing a large amount of vines to shoot out of the ground with that immense power.

"Pikachu dodge the plants while using quick attack!" Ash exclaimed with a bit of panic not expecting such a strong attack from the start.

"Pika! Pika pika pika!" Pikachu ran through the vines with ease until one crossed his way.

"Iron tail!" Ash exclaimed and Pikachu sliced through the vines with the steel type move. The man then counter attacked with his own dangerous tactic.

"Venusaur use poison gas!" The man said as Venusaur expelled a gas that consumed Pikachu.

"Pikachu use counter shield like Serena taught us!" Ash retaliated while putting his fist out.

"Pika...CHUUUUUU!" Pikachu exclaimed while shooting off the thunderbolt and making a vortex. The poison gas dispersed and since Pikachu knew to not breath he did not become poisoned.

"Grr…" the man smirked as he sae that Ash was no pushover. 'The rumors were right apparently' the man thought. The man then took out a pocket watch with a key stone and touched it causing Venusaur to glow and transform, "Mega evolve!" Venusaur then grew in size developing a larger and more menacing coloration with a larger plant on the back that could obviously harbor more poisonous gases.

Ash recoiled. "Pika…" Pikachu said in awe. "Pika pika!" Pikachu then smirked liking the challenge.

"Use seed bomb!" the man exclaimed while pumping his fists in front of him.

"SAURRR!" Venusaur exclaimed as it threw seeds that were exploding in the ground. Pikachu winced in pain as he was hit as this was very painful and damaging. The power of mega evolution really proved itself here.

"Pikachu don't give up! Charge in with quick attack!" Ash commanded thinking up a new strategy.

"Pika pika pika pika pika…" Pikachu started while he ran towards Venusaur that was standing his ground well.

"Mmhhhmmm… Frenzy plant," the man called out. Pikachu though ran up the plants, something Ash had never seen before but he really liked the idea. The man recoiled at the scene.

"Now Pikachu use thunderbolt on yourself!" Ash interjected with a smile as his strategy was sure to work.

"Pika pika pika pika PIKA PIKA PIKA PIKA!" Pikachu ran as he enveloped himself in an electric aura **(Yes this is Volt Tackle, have a problem with it?)**. Pikachu collided with the mega Venusaur making a large explosion and knocking Pikachu into the air. Venusaur barely stood up.

"Now's our chance! Electro ball!" Ash shouted as he pumped his fist and put his hand out with the other arm…

What happened next left Ash's jaw hanging:

"PIKA...CHU!" Pikachu shouted as he glowed yellow and engraved his fist into the ground. Instantly, rain started falling around the battle like if rain dance was used and then lightning started coming from these clouds that dropped gallons of water. The ground where Pikachu hit the ground started crackling with electricity and a large barrage of electrical power lunged at Venusaur causing a massive explosion. That made both trainers wince. As soon as the smoke and rain cleared, it was evident that Venusaur was on the ground unconscious and there was no mega evolution present in Venusaur's form.

"Venusaur!" The man shouted as he noticed Venusaur had lost his mega evolution. "Wow you are strong… I hope to battle again soon." The man recalled his dinosaur and left a dumbfounded Ash.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted embracing Ash. Ash took out his pokedex and noticed that Pikachu learned a new move… One he had never heard of before:

 **Electric Overdrive:**

Base power 150

Typing: Electric

"Electric Overdrive…" Ash muttered to himself as he looked at the description: _A move that barely any electric types know. This move causes a thunderstorm to appear and a large barrage of electricity to be launched at the target._

"Pikachu, I have had enough for today, how about setting up camp?" Ash asked himself.

"Pika!" Pikachu replied as the duo got to work.

 **A/N: What is up with this move? Seems like an electric Blast Burn Am I Rite?**

 **Also, Ash and Serena are parting ways for a little bit again. This time it will probably last a little longer as I want to stir the focus a little out of Serena's performances and back towards Ash and his pokemon… and Ash vs Calem in this chapter is some of that, plus you guys probably would have died to see Ash and Calem battle it out for now. In fact, I did not even know that Calem had a Gallade! That's right! I gave him that Ralts during the prologue, didn't you notice it?**

 **So you may be thinking to yourself: Night, since when did the battles include so much more strategy instead of just calling out moves? Well I have an answer: Ash is more mature now, so yes, he is able to battle with more unpredictability. Keep in mind though, that the better battles of this fic will start at around chapter 20, so that is when you will take a glance of what the battles will really be like.**

 **Are you also hyped by seeing the future potential of Pikachu? I am excited too! I never would have thought of making something that seems this overpowered! So yes, good bye electro ball!**

 **Anyways, I hope you enjoyed! Remember to R & R and I hope to see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **AmourshippingFan: Thanks, glad you liked it, expect things to go out of whack with Serena later on though, but that will be in a long time xD!**

 **Rst64tlc: The performance battle was something I came up with to make a cool rival battle between Serena and Paula. Also, Serena's story will escalate soon, but first comes the Kalos League!**

 **Wes27: Glad you liked the pokegirls! Also you are right, Serena did lose in the anime, but I made it different: Instead of making her lose, I made her win and look like she lost. That was the special twist I added,** _ **Serena is the Kalos Queen**_ **.**

 **Guest 1: Glad you liked it! And things will begin to escalate from here too!**

 **Anonymous Person: Let me clear up your confusion: The second chapter goes back in time to the beginning of his journey. The first chapter was a mission Ash and Calem went on. Here is the thing you need to know: This is Ash's first journey, he is still from Pallet Town, but he fled and is now in Kalos, that is why he has not traveled the other regions yet. As for Diantha, she is distant, yes, but she has a purpose and that is to protect Kalos at all costs. This means that she is doing drastic things like keeping Aria Kalos Queen so that Serena can stay close to Ash: Diantha knows that Serena, despite being capable of being Kalos Queen, should not take the title at this time since she knows something may happen in the future… What might happen you ask? Only I know this ;)**


	16. Chapter 16

_**Ash POV:**_

 _I see myself walking over to a girl with her back turned towards me. Who is this girl? Why is she so familiar. I have camp set up and this girl and me are right next to the river. I find it odd because I set up camp here last night…Is this real?_

 _She turns around at me with a surprised look on her face. I instantly recognize her short honey blonde hair and blue eyes. Serena._

" _Hey Ash, you're up, go wash up, hungry?" Serena asks me with a smile. I don't stop walking to her to a point that I am too close to her. Suddenly, my body collapses right into her arms. I freak out as to why I am doing this, but she is the one that gets a huge blush in her face, why is she blushing? "A-Ash? Are y-you a-alright?" she asks me._

 _I look up and open my mouth and what comes out surprises me, "Now's our chance… now, now…" She keeps looking at me with a strong blush and then I keep talking. "Serena… I…"_

" _I… what?"_

" _I…" I continue with all my strength. What was I going to say? Why am I feeling so weird._

 _Suddenly, I am surprised to see the scene change in front of me into a snowy cliff. The bottom collapses. "CRASH!" I see the snow falling down from where I am relieved that I did not fall, but then I notice something spine breaking._

" _Aaaasssshhhh!" I hear a feminine scream falling which I instantly recognize as Serena._

" _SERENA!" I shout back in urgency. I see her start to reach the halfway mark of the cliff and I see my vision changing and energy surging through me._

 _...I want to save her…_

" _Froga…"_

 _Instantly, my vision changes its perspective a little to the right and I jump after Serena… I notice it is not me physically that jumped, but someone else. As I fall and feel the G force I am slowly gaining on the falling teenager and I stretch out my arms to grab her only to flinch that my hands were blue and webbed. As I reach Serena I see my webbed limbs begin to glow white. This white light blinds my vision and then…_

"(Pant, pant pant)," I keep panting as I instantly sat up in horror inside my sleeping bag. I am sweating and I notice Pikachu woke up just when I sat up by force.

"Pikapi?" Pikachu asks me in worry. I look at my electric mouse friend and scratch behind his ear letting him know I was ok. "Chaaa…" Pikachu cooed and I smile. I look outside and notice that it is still dark so I fall back into slumber once Pikachu fell asleep.

What is the meaning of this dream?

 **A/N: I was only going to put the second part of the dream, but the amourshipping xD… I am sorry but I had to atleast have Ash fall on Serena like that. Other than that, I am trying to make this Snowbelle traveling very symbolic for Frogadier and Ash. Also, did you catch the hint and what I am going for? If you are surprised that Frogadier has not evolved yet and is having these powers as Frogadier, then you can see what my goal is up there. Don't worry it is a spoiler, but it is a good idea I want to try.**

 **Also, as for the others, this chapter will focus more on someone other than, Ash so make sure that you enjoy as next chapter Ash is part of a symbolic battle.**

 **Without further ado, let's get back into the story!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 16- Calem vs Wulfric, a megamazing battle!

 **With Calem walking into the Snowbelle Gym:**

Calem walked into the Snowbelle gym which was very warm from the outside cold weather in the lobby. Instantly, Calem felt welcomed. Calem wanted to make the most out of this battle and win it right off so he could go straight to the pokemon league. Calem had his team ready and he was going to make sure that he could give it his all. Calem kept walking until he saw a pair of double doors and a monitor on top.

The monitor opened up and began to speak, "Welcome to the Snowbelle gym, how may we be of assistance?"

Calem smirked and replied while pumping his fist, "I would like a gym battle please!"

The monitor then replied to the proposition, "Sure thing, make sure you have your jacket on as the gym is cold inside!" the double doors suddenly opened up causing the cold air to rush through Calem stunning him, but also making his spirit burn as he was ready.

Looking around, Calem saw a large amount of ice around the gym from the icicles on the air to the breath that could be seen when one exhaled. Also, one look at the battlefield and Calem noticed it was made completely out of ice.

On the stands stood many people that were watching Calem walk up to the trainer box along with the ref at the side of the field who was completely in snow gear.

The other trainer box stood in front of what looked like an ice throne. Calem looked at the throne and noticed a man with a jacket that he did not use the sleeves of, a large stature and a large beard on his face. Most notably, this man had a collar around his neck which Calem found suspicious. This man stood up and welcomed Calem, "Welcome to the Snowbelle gym, I am Wulfric the gym leader." The man then looked right at Calem's eyes and smirked, "And I accept your challenge."

The ref then looked at both trainers that were standing in their trainer boxes and started giving instructions, "This will be a three on three pokemon battle. The battle will be over when all three pokemon on either side are unable to continue. Do all the trainers agree to these rules?" Calem and Wulfric nodded to the ref who then raised his hand. "Great, now choose your first pokemon!"

"Beartic let's battle!" Wulfric shouted as he revealed a very large polar bear that stood on both feet. The Beartic gave a huge roar of power as Calem stood there not flinching, but smirking at the level of strength of his opponent.

Calem then reached into his belt and grabbed his lead pokeball, the pokeball he was going to start with. "Chesnaught come on out!" Chesnaught then came out and gave a huge battle cry before clenching his fists and looking at Beartic with a smirk.

The ref then looked and both trainers and lowered his hand, "Battle BEGIN!"

 **Battle Music… Calem (Chesnaught) vs Wulfric (Beartic):**

Calem stretched out his arms and began commanding Chesnaught, "Wood hammer!" Chesnaught instantly made his hand turn into a green shining log and rushed straight at the Beartic. Calem knew he was at somewhat of a disadvantage, but he had to take things on correctly.

Wulfric then saw the incoming attack and said nothing. This surprised Calem, but Calem stayed cool as he watched Chesnaught ram his green log into Beartic's stomach. The beartic shot out and hit the wall at the other side of the field and Wulfric then widened his eyes in surprise. "I must say, you have a strong Chesnaught there, but how will you deal with this?" Wulfric the threw out a fist and exclaimed, "Counter!"

"Bear...TICC!" Beartic shouted as Beartic got up and made his fist glow white making Calem flinch. Beartic began to run straight at Chesnaught and this looked like it could be deadly for Chesnaught.

As Beartic neared Chesnaught, Calem smirked completely happy about Wulfric's call because Wulfric fell into a good trap, "Spiky shield!" Chesnaught reacted quickly and put out his hands forming a green shield th at had many spikes in front of it. Beartic slammed into the shield and stumbled back in pain once contact was made making Wulfric be surprised at how strong Calem was with Chesnaught.

Wulfric regained his composure and thought about a possible way to cause Chesnaught to get disoriented and then came up with a plan, "Beartic use ice punch, let's go!"

"Beartic… TICC!" Beartic shouted as he made his fist freezing blue and started to run towards the stationary Chesnaught.

"Wood hammer counter it!" Calem shouted. Chesnaught obeyed and made his limb glow green and into a log again as Beartic started running towards Chesnaught. Chesnaught then began to run through the ice slipping at times because of the slippery surface, but Chesnaught still maintained his balance.

The two large pokemon met in the middle in a huge dominance for power. Both pokemon struggled to have their attack go through and finally both pokemon fell back and got up smirking because of how strong the opponent was. This truly was a great match for them.

 **In the stands:**

"That challenger seems tough, I wonder how Wulfric will do this," one of the many spectators said coldly.

"Wulfric has a secret weapon, there is not a doubt this will be an amazing battle," another voice replied.

 **Back at the battlefield:**

"Beartic go for another ice punch!" Wulfric commanded as he put his hand out. Beartic broke into a sprint and Calem figured that making the same move he used before would not be the best idea.

"Spiky Shield!"

"Ches...NAUGHT!" Chesnaught roared as he out the green energy with quills in front of him. The Beartic once more slammed into the shield, it this time did not move in fact the Beartic resisted the spiky shield.

Wulfric saw this and smirked as his plan would go well, "Use avalanche!"

"What? Chesnaught NO!" Calem shouted in surprise as the clouds formed above Chesnaught and landed causing Chesnaught to fall to the ground barely getting up. Beartic seemed happy and Wulfric commanded another ice punch, but with this Calem was prepared, "Chesnaught use rollout!" Chesnaught did not get up, but instead started to roll around the icy field and met up with Beartic's ice punch. This time the polar bear got sent to the ground.

Wulfric seemed surprised, but he did not back down, "Get up and use counter!"

"BearTICCC!"

Calem smirked as he saw his opening, "Use wood hammer on the ice!" Chesnaught slammed his green log into the ground making a barrage of ice appear from the ground and charge after Beartic like a stone edge. The ice hit the Beartic and there was a decently sized explosion in which Beartic barely stood up, and then Calem went for the finisher, "Now Chesnaught use pin missile!"

"Ches...NAUGHT!" shot his white missiles into the air and all of them landed on Beartic instantly causing an explosion in which Beartic was found lying unconscious.

The ref was not late to make the call either, "Beartic is unable to battle, the winner is Chesnaught!"

"Alright Chesnaught!" Calem shouted as he pumped his fist into the air. Wulfric had a smirk of impression as he materialized his Beartic into its pokeball.

"You are stronger than I thought," Wulfric declared, "but this pokemon will bring you a lot of trouble… Avalugg battle stance!"

"Avalugg!" The pokemon that came from the pokeball cried as it touched the ground in a strong bang from the weight.

"Chesnaught, let's keep up this momentum, use pin missile!" Calem shouted as he swung his arms to the sides. Chesnaught let go of ten missiles that headed for Avalugg, and Wulfric knew he had to stop it before things got ugly. The missiles began to fall on the Avalugg and the giant ice monster seemed to be fine with being attacked directly and tanking hits.

"Gyro ball!" Wulfric exclaimed as he formed a fist in front of him. Avalugg began to spin at the last second and the spin was extremely strong, unlike anyone has ever seen before. The Pin Missile went to fall on the Avalugg, but the missiles just shook off without any effort. Calem gritted his teeth watching this as it was very hard to stop the spin. "Now charge in with gyro ball!" Wulfric commanded once more.

"Quick use Spiky Shield!" Calem shouted while putting both arms in an X like fashion in front of his face to prevent any debris. The spiky shield setup for the spinning Avalugg was meant to stop the Avalugg, which it did. Chesnaught though, was getting tired from the constant battling and Calem had to make sure Chesnaught would do his best and pull through.

The attacks collided and amazingly, the Avalugg stopped spinning while taking damage from the shield. Wulfric them smirked and gave a command that made Calem regret ever using spiky shield. "Use ice fang!" Avalugg made a large blue fang that went around the shield and hit Chesnaught, thus making Calem's eyes widen as Chesnaught fell on the floor in front of him.

"Ches… Naught…" Chesnaught said in pain as he stood up with a green aura around him.

"Chesnaught," Calem started. "Right… We are not giving up just yet!" Chesnaught then gave a large battle cry before flexing all the muscles in his body making his look bigger.

"Wow, I am impressed, but let's see how your pokemon takes this!" Wulfric shouted. "Gyro ball!" Avalugg started to go straight for Chesnaught spinning like a top. Calem just stood there and Chesnaught then braced himself for the impact that was coming. The attack collided and amazingly Chesnaught slid back a bit before he engraved his feet in the ice to stop himself. The spinning caused a lot of damage until Avalugg lost its momentum causing Avalugg to stop spinning.

Calem then put his hands out in front of him and directed then towards the ceiling, "Throw Avalugg into the air!"

"Ches….CHAUUUUUUGHTTTT!" Chesnaught grabbed Avalugg and with amazing strength started spinning the large turtle around. Wulfric stared in horror as Chesnaught sent Avalugg into the sky unable to defend against any attack.

"PIN MISSILE!/AVALANCHE!" Both trainers shouted and both pokemon sent their attacks. Chesnaught sent a pin missile from his back as clouds formed above him that started to drop huge chunks of ice. The pin missile hit Avalugg in mid air and caused an explosion making others be shocked as the giant ice turtle hit the ground with a large thud. With Chesnaught, the avalanche fell on Chesnaught causing a large explosion. Everyone stood there confused as to what had happened but when the white smoke disappeared, one could see both pokemon on the ground motionless.

The ref looked shocked at the outcome, but gave the call immediately, "Both pokemon are unable to battle, choose your next pokemon."

Both trainers pulled out their pokeballs and stored their pokemon in their pokeballs with confident faces. Calem was having fun with this battle, but Wulfric felt accomplished with this battle. The fact that someone could take out two of his pokemon with only one made him extremely pumped.

"My last pokemon," Wulfric declared. "Come on out… Abomasnow!"

"ROAAAARRR!"

Calem stared as Abomasnow sent a large wind around the stadium which caused it to hail. Calem then went into his belt and picked up a pokeball. A pokemon he always wanted to use since he got his trick up his sleeve just recently. "Gallade! LET'S BATTLE!" Calem shouted as he threw the pokeball. The pokeball split up and opened to reveal a bipedal pokemon with blade like arms. This pokemon then took a little damage from hail, but did not flinch.

Wulfric stared at this Gallade and knew something even stronger was coming. "Abomasnow use ice shard!" Wulfric commanded while pumping his fist.

"Stop then all by using psycho cut!" Calem commanded. The purple blades caused the shards to split into harmless little pieces that Calem needed to see. Then Calem went on the offensive, "Gallade use close combat!"

"Gall...ADE…" Gallade shouted as Gallade ran up to the Abomasnow and started punching it all over the place. Abomasnow seemed to be taking a good amount of damage as Gallade retreated from the close combat. Wulfric looked very impressed by the Gallade, by testing its power he saw the potential it had.

"Abomasnow use wood hammer on the ice!" Wulfric commanded pulling off the same tactic that Calem had earlier. Abomasnow shot the green log to the ground and caused a barrage of ice go be headed towards Gallade. Calem saw the potential danger, but knew he could counter it.

"Stone edge!" Calem exclaimed. The rocks then interacted with the ice making a lot of white smoke through which both pokemon were hidden. "Now use leaf blade!" Gallade went through and slashed a large green X through the torso of Abomasnow shocking Wulfric from the amount of power that Gallade could express.

When the smoke cleared, Abomasnow was on its knees barely able to battle. Wulfric knew he needed to play his trump card so Wulfric grabbed his collar and opened it attracting many gasps from the audience in amazement. Calem's eyes went to the contents of the collar revealing a keystone. "Abomasnow… MEGA EVOLVE!" Abomasnow started to glow white and everyone stared in awe as the large pokemon that stood before them had mega evolved. "Use wood hammer!" Abomasnow took this time to unleash an amazingly strong wood hammer on Gallade. Gallade fell back and Calem gritted his teeth.

"Gallade get up we can win this!" Calem motivated. Gallade effectively got up and shook of the pain. Calem then decided to unleash his secret weapon. He grabbed his jacket's sleeve and pulled it back revealing a keystone on a watch. "Gallade, MEGA EVOLVE!" Gallade turned white and transformed into a caped pokemon with larger and more menacing blades. Gallade put his arms out in a battle stance that made Calem confident. "Stone edge!" Calem shouted as he punched the floor. Gallade punched the floor and sent a barrage of rocks.

"Ice shard!" Wulfric shouted as Abomasnow launched extremely powerful missile like shards towards the stone edge and successfully stopped it. "Now use ice punch!" Abomasnow charged an ice punch and headed it towards the Gallade.

"Gallade counter with close range Psycho cut!" Calem retaliated while pumping a fist. Gallade made his limbs glow white as he ran towards the Abomasnow and its freezing punch. The attacks collided and there was a large explosion surrounding both pokemon. Calem then knew his pokemon had come out on top and threw a punch into the air, "Close Combat!"

A large beating was heard in the white some, no one not even the spectators could register what was happening until the smoke cleared and on the ground was a motionless Abomasnow in its regular form. The ref took no time in making the call, "Abomasnow is unable to battle which which means the win goes to Calem the challenger!" At those words Calem pumped his fist and went to the field to check on his friend who had just returned to his normal form.

"Great job Gallade," Calem told his friend. The spectators all clapped for the challenger as they were pleased with the results and the fact that they got to see an amazing battle. Calem high fived (somehow) Gallade and the two of them were presented by the badge by Wulfric who came walking from his throne.

"That truly was an amazing and exhilarating battle, I do see a lot of potential in you, specially in Gallade and just as much on Chesnaught being able to take out two of my pokemon like that," Wulfric stated with a chuckle as he gave Calem his badge. "Here, for your proof of victory in the Snowbelle gym, this is the Iceberg Badge."

"Thanks a lot," Calem replied as he put the Iceberg Badge in the badge case. The badge case glistened with all eight badges. "Gallade look at this," Calem told his friend. Gallade came behind Calem. "We have all eight badges, we are going to the Kalos League!"

"So you are competing at the Kalos League?" Wulfric asked Calem.

Calem looked at Wulfric and said, "Yes sir!"

"Well then, good luck," Wulfric replied as he patted Calem's back. "The strongest trainers battle there and I know you will do great!"

"Thanks," Calem said as he and Gallade sweatdropped at Wulfric's attitude.

 **In route to Snowbelle City:**

"There he is," A person in a white dress muttered as she watched Ash walking towards Snowbelle city. "I need to test him, he has the potential…" the person replied.

"Gardevoir…"

"I know Gardevoir, we need to battle him, I want to battle his strongest as well," the figure replied as she dashed into a another bush to prevent being seen by Ash.

 **A/N: This was quite the chapter. I really have improved my writing now that I look back at this battle. I remember being so crappy xD. Yes, I know this was a somewhat short battle, but it only really had three battles in it and it was very one sided to Calem. Also, I don't know if Beartic can learn counter, but whatever. Also, I want you guys to keep in mind that the chapters will start to get a little longer, I have already written 8k-11k chapters for the future so I hope you guys are excited for those as they actually take a little more effort for me to make TBH xD!**

 **Anyways, hope you enjoyed, remember to R & R, and as always I hope to see you guys next time! **

**Responding to some reviews:**

 **Wes27: You will see how I continue developing him later on in the story. Glad you are enjoying it!**

 **Guest 1: Thanks! Glad you enjoy it! I am going to keep it up, I have almost finished writing chapter 38 as we speak FYI.**

 **Rst64tlc: HAHA, get ready because I am making up another move for another one of Ash's pokemon, and this you will learn very soon too!**

 **TheLegendaryGuy: I know I know, you get onto me about all of my bad whoopsies in writing. It is a combination of immature writing (like these chapters) and autocorrect on my phone when I am not using the computer! xD Just so you know that the better side of my writing is coming, my Kalos League Chapters (which I am about a third of the way done writing the conference itself) are ranging from either 5k-11k words so I am definitely improving! About Ash having an Alolan pokemon… I am thinking about it, you see I already showcase a lot of the Alolan pokemon here on this fic, but I may actually do something in the future. Also, keep in mind that I want Ash to use this team throughout his Kalos Arc, so for now I cannot hint towards anything because I have not really focused on planning that. Right now I am working on the Kalos League and that is all I really know what will happen. Anyways, I hope that you caught some of my development with Serena because I may do something special with her in the future (not sure yet) that will make her stronger as a person… Also, I kind of don't want Serena to look like a person that just performs and blushes, because I know I can write her better than that! For the guy with the Venusaur… I just got lazy and didn't make up a name so I kept him anonymous… oops… Well, that is probably all we are going to see of him for now so I don't plan on bringing him back until later LOL! Also, one last thing you should know: Electric Overdrive is not a Z move. In fact, this is an ultimate replacement for electro ball that Ash can use when he pleases without having to do any sort of participation with the move! But yea, about Serena just using hydro vortex like that, she is just very special I am guessing (This means that I am going to have to write in something to address that since I made that chapter BEFORE sun and moon even came out… what a klutz!). Anyways, glad you enjoyed!**


	17. Chapter 17

**Glorio City:**

"So Shauna, what are your plans?" Serena asks her friend towards the beginning of the route to Snowbelle. Serena had just asked the question since she was going to Snowbelle to see Ash's gym battle.

Shauna turned to Serena, the brunette just smiled at the honey blond, "Actually I am going to go see the others at Lumiose, they are training for the league and I want to make sure that they can be top notch for the league!" Shauna exclaimed happily while the duo walked through the route and ended in a fork in the road.

Serena looked at the sign and smiled at Shauna, "Well, Calem is in that direction." Serena giggled as she pointed to the left fork. Shauna blushed a little, bit smirked back.

"Ash is that way, better catch up to him before he does something reckless again," Shauna smiled. Serena could not help but blush a little at what was said. Serena then started walking through the left side of the fork and Serena took the right. "See you soon!" Shauna shouted.

"You too Shauna!" Serena exclaimed back as Serena walked into the right side of the fork. She was prepared to watch Ash win his last badge, all Ash had to do was win and that would be it.

"Talon...FLAMEEEE!" A large squeak was heard from above attracting attention. The majestic fire bird blended in with the clouds and sun and Serena noticed it was Calem's Talonflame. Of course it was Calem's he loves to ride that thing. Serena though, she knew that Talonflame did not compete with Ash's Charizard.

Serena smirked and kept on walking, she would expect to make it to Snowbelle soon, maybe in time to see Ash battle.

 **A/N: How do you guys like it if I start the story and then go to the A/N? Does it seem a little like commercials because I can stop if you want xD. Anyways I am enjoying myself with writing this fic atm. I don't know how much of you are loving it, but if you made it this far, then you probably do!**

 **Anyways, I am trying to improve my battles so from now on you can expect more mature battles like the one that I made last time (But you will need to wait a little more until you can see the really awesome chapters!)**

 **It took me a while and an entire tournament to get me this far in making a successful battle in a fanfiction. The good thing is that I figured it out before episode 35 of** _ **The Fallen Trainer**_ **and so you can expect an even better tournament here battle wise for the pokemon league… Heck, I have most of the battles planned out already lol!**

 **Anyways I hope you enjoy this battle, it is another important part of the story in Ash and Frogadier! I know, I know: "Nightshock, what about Sceptile, Noivern, Charizard, we have not seen them battle in a while!? and STIKEN GOODRA?! HE HAS NEVER BEEN SHOWN BATTLING!"**

 **My response: "Dude, chill, these guys will have their episodes dedicated to them… I just want to make Frogadier and Ash the bond that needs to happen first… Later, we will get to see Ash's entire team as a whole and develop more of each pokemon."**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 17- A Battle of all Champions!

 **Ash POV:**

I walk through the route. I have forest surrounding my right as well as a nice meadow on my left… The perfect place to train! I look over at my electric mouse and he smiled at me a so I made my way over to the open area. Then, I reach to my belt and take out two pokeballs. I swing my hand around as I let go of the pokeball and out comes my soundwave dragon and my fire dragon.

"Gruaw!" Charizard roars at me.

"Vern!" Noivern looks at me.

I look at the two pokemon and smirk, "Noivern, you have gotten a lot stronger, but I want to work on your endurance, ever since you evolved you could hit hard, but not take as much, that is why in every head on collision we had, you always lose or tie."

"Vern!" Noivern nodded in understanding.

"Now, I don't know when the next time we battle Remo will be, but I am sure going to want you two to be my leaders for that battle," I declare with a smile. The two pokemon look at me confidently as I command then both to get airborne.

Charizard flies and makes its way near me and I have Noivern face him. "Alright you two, Noivern use sky attack and Charizard use flare blitz!"

"Noi...VERRRRRNNN!" Noivern enveloped himself in a gold mystical aura. Then Noivern flew for Charizard.

"ROAAARRR!" Likewise, Charizard enveloped himself in a blue fiery aura and charged Noivern.

The gap between both pokemon closed and I saw a large explosion that looked like anyone could have won. I was so confused as to who was able to take the worst of the attack, but judging from the way the explosion occurred I knew that Noivern had the worst of it. When the smoke clears I see both pokemon suspended in mid air and then Noivern fell from the sky and hit the ground with a loud thud.

I run over to check on Noivern, "Are you alright Noivern?" Charizard lands next to me and also talks with the fellow the dragon. The soundwave pokemon stands up and shakes his head as to shake off the pain. Then he let out a large battlecry that left my ears piercing and I smirked. "I guess you are, that collision sure was something."

"Gruaw."

"Noi noivern."

"Alright, Noivern you tolerated it that time decently so I am going to bump up the difficulty with tough claws. I want to try the same thing again with you two, only that this time," I touch my keystone and my Charizard mega evolves into a Mega Charizard X. Knowing that having a boosted attack and the touch claws ability will make it extremely powerful. "Ok, now try it!"

The two pokemon the headed for the skies and I watched them get prepared. Where is Pikachu? I look behind me and see that Pikachu had his ears perked up for some reason… why? He must have seen some wild pokemon or something. " _ **BOOM"**_ _._ My attention is then returned to right in front of me where I see Noivern and Charizard collide once more. The explosion was larger this time, but in the end it was more blue instead of gold so I instantly worried for Noivern. When the smoke cleared I saw how Noivern fell to the ground in a large thud once more.

In reflex me, Pikachu and Charizard went to check, on Noivern. "Are you alright buddy?"

"Pika?"

"Gruaw?"

"Noi… vern…" Noivern grunted while catching his breath. I had pushed Noivern to the limit, but atleast he knows how strong attacks can come at him like. I looked into my backpack and grabbed a potion and started spraying it on Noivern

I look at the soundwave dragon reassuringly and smile, "You were awesome Noivern, you are getting a lot more durable. I am surprised you even stayed conscious after that brutal collision you just had." I look over at Charizard and he nodded at me as he went from black and blue, back to bright orange. When I was done spraying Noivern I return my dragons into their pokeballs and turn to Pikachu, "Let's keep going."

"Pika!" Pikachu agrees with me as we started walking out of the open field and back to the dirt road.

"Why hello there fellow trainer," a new voice interacts with my ears and I turn to follow it. Then I see a woman staring at me. She had a white dress that seemed like a pair of wings behind it. She had short gray hair and a pale skin. I could have sworn I knew who she was. Not only that, I notice she has a keystone as a necklace and next to her stands a majestic Gardevoir with a mega stone on her neck. "I want to battle your power, I saw you training just now and I saw you had some powerful pokemon. One being a mega evolving Charizard, I also heard you had a Sceptile…" The woman then smirked along with her Gardevoir and looked at me with determination. "Want to battle? Oh, excuse me, how rude of me, my name is Diantha! I really see a strong challenge in you!"

Diantha.

That name.

It clicks in me, no doubt that standing right in front of me is the Kalos Champion. The one who just challenged me to a battle is the best in this land and she gave me the opportunity. I smile and speak up, "My name is Ash, Ash Ketchum, nice to meet you! And I accept your challenge!"

"Then I will be battling with my one and only Gardevoir!" Diantha tells me with a smile as Gardevoir moves in front of Diantha in a relaxed and ready position. The one that indicated that she would give everything she had to me.

I instantly get pumped at the challenge and reach for my belt. I feel the pokeballs as I go through them. Charizard. Sceptile. Noivern. Goodra… Ahh! Here it is! I grab the last pokeball and smirk. "Frogadier! I choose you!"

"Froga!" Frogadier shouts in front of me. Pikachu gets off my shoulder and goes to the sides to watch the battle. Pikachu is curious as to why I would choose Frogadier of all pokemon as he seemed the least ready. Pikachu looks at me with that confused expression.

Diantha also seems surprised, "Frogadier? You are going to battle with a pre evolved form? I was expecting something… you know, more menacing?" Diantha stated her concern as I looked back at her with a smirk.

"Do you think Pikachu is menacing?" I ask her.

"You may have the first move," Diantha tells me politely as she drops the last conversation. I look over at the aquatic frog and nod. Frogadier feels pump and just like I promised him we would win, I am giving his this battle.

 **Battle music begin! Ash (Frogadier) vs Diantha (Gardevoir):**

"Thanks," I say with a smile that instantly turns into a smirk of battle. I put my arm out and direct an attack. "Use continuous water pulses!" Frogadier nods and does exactly that. He charges two spheres of energy in his hands and blasts them towards the opposing Gardevoir.

What happened next completely surprised me. Gardevoir and Diantha looked at eachother and nodded. As the water pulses were about to make contact, Gardevoir instantly got out of the way leaving me completely speechless as the balls of water kept going and exploded out of harm's way.

"Keep going, go in with cut!" I shout watching Frogadier make white kunais out of thin air and sprinting towards Gardevoir. Again, just as Frogadier is about to hit, Gardevoir gets out of the way.

I have to think of something.

"Shadow Ball!" I hear Diantha shout with a hand extended palm down. I see Gardevoir charging up a shadow ball and I have to admit it was large. Not only that, but when the sphere was launched I saw the speed at which it moved extremely fast… too fast to dodge.

"Quick counter with water pulse!" I command. Frogadier makes two water pulses and charges them at the shadow ball. When the two blue spheres connect with the purple and electric one, there is a small explosion with enough smoke for my plan. I go for my counter attack. "Now use double team!"

"Froga… Froga… Froga…" Frogadier shouts as he splits into many forms. These many forms are concealed in the smoke and Gardevoir cannot get a glimpse of them. Diantha also looks concerned as to where the Frogadiers are coming from.

Finally, I make my command, "Aerial ace!" Frogadier and his copies jump out towards the Gardevoir who is standing there immobile. Frogadier's limbs were glowing white as all the copies went through the smoke.

Diantha smirked and simply stated, "Checkmate… Gardevoir use moonblast on all of them!"

"Gar...DEVOIR!" Gardevoir shouted as she used her psychic powers to levitate into the air. She then aimed at all the copies of Frogadier and launched a large colorful blast down at the frogadiers with a lot of power causing a large explosion. I was surprised to see such a powerful move, but I had something else planned.

I throw my fist out in the air and shout, "Now Frogadier!"

"Froga...DIER!" Frogadier appears behind Gardevoir like a ninja and when he is about to hit, I see my point of view change. In front of me, I see my fist glowing as in aerial ace as I am about to punch Gardevoir. With the surprise, the hit connects and Gardevoir gets launched to the ground. My point of view shifts back and I look at my hands in shock.

What… was… that…

I look over at Diantha who looks at me wide eyed. I am guessing it is because I just hit her Gardevoir, but I guess I could call it unpredictability.

 **Diantha POV:**

He hit me… how? Elite four members like Winkstorm can't last two seconds with me in battle with mega evolved pokemon… Yet this young man can actually inflict damage on Gardevoir with a pre-evolution? Is this Ash Ketchum the one that can bring peace like Olympia said?

 **Ash POV:**

"Frogadier, use cut!" I shout as I see Frogadier make his kunais and charge Diantha. Diantha again nods and her Gardevoir avoids the attack which gives me an idea. "Frogadier use double team once more!"

"Froga… Froga… Froga…"

The copies all go around Gardevoir and I smirk as I pump my fist, "Now use your frubbles on Gardevoir's legs!" Frogadier then grabs some frubbles and shoots them at the feet of Gardevoir further stressing out Diantha. "Now go for a water pulse!" Frogadier shoots a water pulse and Gardevoir seems stuck.

"Try and dodge Gardevoir!" Diantha shouts with a hint of panic in her voice. Gardevoir though, is immobile and stuck in the sticky substance **(Omg… if you guys are this dirty minded about pokemon, specially Gardevoir… You know what I am not going to say anything else)**. The water pulse collides in a medium sized explosion that leaves Gardevoir on the ground barely able to move.

I see Frogadier ready to finish things and I shout, "Go and use cut!"

"Froga…" Frogadier charges with his white kunais. Again, I saw it, the blue glistening in the kunais… Frogadier quickly was closing the gap, but what happened next made things harder.

Diantha grabbed the keystone in her necklace and soon flashing prongs started to come out of both the keystone and megastone as they connected and caused Gardevoir to glow completely white, grow larger features **(Don't you dare again)** and a longer skirt. "Gardevoir, MEGA EVOLVE!" Diantha shouted with excitement. Diantha then put her hands in front of herself in an X fashion, "Gardevoir use protect!"

"Garde...voir!" Gardevoir set up a shield in front of her that stopped Frogadier. Frogadier suddenly got overwhelmed and recoiled back.

"Now Gardevoir use moonblast!" Diantha shouted.

I recoiled a little and pumped my fists, "Water Pulse!"

Gardevoir charged up the colorful beam and Frogadier at the same time his water sphere. I watched in awe at how Frogadier made his water pulse larger than I have ever seen before. At the sametime, both attacks crossed each other and caused two large explosions, one being in front of me and one in front of Diantha. The blast made my scarf wave as the smoke cleared.

When the smoke cleared I felt a searing pain course through my body as I fell to my knees along with Frogadier. Gardevoir was on her knees, but managed to stay up. The battle was over… I may have only been hit once, but I still lost.

I was still suffering in pain and I could feel the moonblast coursing through my blood vessels like fire burning through my flesh. I felt defeated and weak at the same time. I had my eyes shadowed with arms over my chest trying to endure the pain that came from the moonblast… A moonblast that oddly enough, did not touch me.

Diantha watched me in physical pain and grew surprised so she ran over to me and helped me up. "Thanks," I tell her in an appreciative tone.

"No problem, let's check on Frogadier," Diantha told me as she helped me walk to my frog. Gardevoir returned to her normal form and was helping Frogadier up. I felt good that I put up quite a battle against the champion, but I still felt horrible at the same time. Something about losing with Frogadier made me feel terrible… I need to find this answer and soon.

"Frogadier, are you ok?" I ask Frogadier as we reach him.

"Pikapi?" Pikachu asks Frogadier.

"Froga…" Frogadier looks down in frustration, I could not help but feel the same way.

"Frogadier take a good rest," I tell my pokemon as I take out a pokeball and materialize him to red energy. Then the ball closes and stays shut. I would need to use a pokemon center to help Frogadier recover.

Diantha's voice then breaks me from my thoughts, "Hey Ash?" I look at her and she has her hand stretched out. "I had fun, you actually put up a challenge!"

I shook her hand and smiled, "Thanks, but next time we battle, things will be different!"

"Pika pika!"

"Alright then," Diantha told me with a smile. She then turned to her Gardevoir and with one final goodbye both trainer and pokemon glowed white and teleported to another part of the region I don't know where.

 **With Diantha speaking to the elite four members at the pokemon league:**

"How strong is he?" Malva asks as she reclines in her seat. The fire trainer was with her mega evolving houndoom.

"I am also very concerned about how your battle went," Winkstorm implies as Siebold nods his head at Winkstorm in accordance. The mega Scizor and mega Blastoise trainers are intrigued with Ash and curious about his power.

"I see a bright spirit in that boy," Drampa states while smiling an elderly smile in her chair.

Diantha stood up and was about to leave the room. She then looks back at the relaxing elite four members and simply stated, "He is stronger than I thought…"

"How so?" Siebold asks while cocking his head.

Diantha looks back and simply says: "He actually hit me more than I hit him. He got a good four hits off on Gardevoir while I only got one… and the only reason why I won was because his pokemon was a Frogadier and not able to take one head on moonblast from a mega Gardevoir." Diantha then left the room leaving the other elite four members with a surprised look in their face.

Not even the elite four members could put up that well of a battle against the champion Diantha.

 **With Ash travelling to Snowbelle City:**

"Pikachu, there is a pokemon center!" Ash shouted as he ran into the pokemon center. The pokemon center was filled with people sitting around on the couches. Ash decided that he had to heal up his pokemon so he walked up to nurse joy, "Hello nurse Joy, can you heal my pokemon?"

Nurse joy smiled at Ash and got out a stretcher, "I will have them ready for you in a bit!" Nurse joy then took the pokeballs and Pikachu in the stretcher and Ash turned around to walk to a table with food when a voice broke his thoughts.

"Ash?" a tanned teenager that seemed older than Ash with an orange and green jacket asked the raven haired trainer. Ash turned around only to be surprised at who asked the question. "Ash is that you?"

"Brock… it has been a long time!" Ash shouted as he shook Brock's hand.

Brock smiled and asked Ash, "So Ash, why have you not been in Kanto for the last couple of years?" Ash heard this and his posture slumped. When Brock noticed Ash's posture he instantly corrected himself. "Don't worry about it, I am actually headed to Snowbelle right now, I was going to want to see how Wulfric uses his ice types to battle, his Abomasnow appeals to me because of its big size, so I wanted to see how he uses it to deal with smaller opponents so I can be stronger with my Steelix."

"Really, I am headed to Snowbelle city as well! Why don't we go together?!" Ash asked his friend.

Brock put a smile in his face, "Sure, but what do you need to do with Wulfric?" Brock asked with curiosity. He did not even know how Ash even ended up in Kalos to begin with.

Ash pumped his fist, "What do you think? Earn my last badge!"

"You are a pokemon trainer now? Let me guess, pokemon master?" Brock asked with a smirk. Ash nodded. "Well then you are going to need to show me your pokemon! I want to see how strong they are!"

"Sure, we can totally show each other our pokemon, I just have to wait until they are all rested up," Ash explained.

Brock then gave a knowing look and smiled, "Then in the meantime let's get something to eat!" At that exact moment, Ash's stomach growled making Brock chuckle.

"Yea… Let's get some food…" Ash said sheepishly.

 **A/N: Another decent, but short battle chapter. Again, this is not when most of my effort on the battles was amazing… You just gotta be a little more patient about this as I have to keep working in making the other chapters amazing. Tell me what you think! Brock being added seems like a good idea. I may have Clemont and Bonnie soon! Hint hint!**

 **Anyways guys, if you got this far, thanks for reading! Know that the chapters will only get better from here, so stay tuned!**

 **Remember to R & R and hope to see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **AmourshippingFan: Thanks for enjoying it! Anyways, that is Diantha! Well, you know now.**

 **NinjaFang1331: Thanks! Hope you keep enjoying any future battles!**

 **Guest 1: I will keep up the good work! Thanks for enjoying the fic so far!**


	18. Chapter 18

"So Ash, what is your team?" Brock asked Ash. The duo was on the practice battlefield of the pokemon center. Brock had shown off his Steelix and Swampert, pokemon that Ash found fascinating. Other than Pikachu on his shoulder, Brock knew of no other pokemon Ash had caught.

"Alright here they are!" Ash exclaimed as he grabbed the five pokeballs in his belt. He then threw the pokeballs up into the air and they flashed a white light that reached the ground. The white light then morphed into the shape of all of Ash's pokemon. When the coloring of the pokemon came, Ash introduced them, "Hey guys, this is Brock, I knew him back when I lived in Kanto!"

"Tile Sceptile!"

"Gruaw"

"Goo goo goodra!"

"Noivern vern!"

"Froga!"

Brock stood there amazed at Ash's roster, "Ash you truly have some amazing pokemon. They are all well trained by the looks of it!"

Ash just sheepishly scratched the back of his head, "Oh thank you Brock!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu exclaimed while mimicking Ash's movements. Brock found amazing how the pair was so alike and strong. No only that, the fact that the pokemon were all very fast and capable really surprised Brock.

"Shall we get going to Snowbelle?" Brock asked Ash.

"Yea!" Ash exclaimed as he threw a fist into the sky. "Eight badge here we come!" Ash returned his pokemon to his pokeball and then the duo began to go to the dirt road that was the route to Snowbelle City… Little did they know, they would run into travel ahead.

 **A/N: So last time we left off, Diantha met Ash. How is this significant and what about our** _ **real**_ **Kalos Queen. Why was Serena deprived of her win as Kalos Queen?**

 **Let's see how the story takes us. Also, I want to mention that this arc is preparation for the climax and ultimately, the mastery of something huge for Ash.**

 **Also, I want to tell you guys about something special during this chapter: When I have** _ **italics**_ **in between quotation marks it is an echo effect. For example: If something comes out as** " _ **Ash! How are you?"**_ **it should be thought of sounding like this: "ASH! Ash! ash. HOW ARE YOU?! You?! you?" only it is read at a lot faster pace. This effect is needed for this chapter by the way.**

 **Anyways I hope you enjoy this other short chapter! (I promise they will get longer xD!)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 18- Team Flare Conflicts

 **Disclaimer: The first part of the chapter includes major violence and could throughout. You HAVE been warned!**

 **With Serena:**

"Popplio use water gun!" Serena shouted. Popplio shot a beam of water straight from her mouth in order to take down a large opponent that was in Serena's way.

"Girl, your little water seal is no match for my Sawk," a man in orange shouted. "Team Flare shall take that little runt from you!"

"Never!" Serena shouted at the team Flare grunt taunting her. "I know that I can do this with the help of my pokemon, you won't take Popplio away from me!"

"Pop...PLIO!"

The man sighed and looked at Serena dead on in the eyes, "That Popplio knows a Z Move, something that interests my boss so hand it over!"

"Never!"

"Sawk use close combat!"

"Popplio!" Serena shouted with terror as the bipedal, blue, muscular pokemon approached Popplio. Serena knew Popplio would not take it so she jumped into the attack instead. Serena put Popplio and hugged the small pokemon in her chest as she received punches and kicks to her back. "URGH!" Serena shouted with pain. The pain was like needles penetrating her skin at supersonic speeds. Blood started staining the back of Serena's top as the punches kept causing damage to her skin.

"Popplio!" Popplio shouted at Serena in terror watching her trainer become hit by the pokemon and wincing in pain. Popplio saw her trainer's heroic actions and shouted, "POPPLIOOOOOOOOOO!" Suddenly, Serena got enveloped in a white light. A light that was coming from Popplio as she looked completely crystal in her color. Then, Popplio began to grow in shape and developed more features that seemed to make her more elegant. Finally, the new pokemon stopped glowing and used a strong hydro pump that hit Sawk and knocked him up against a tree along with the Team Flare grunt as soon as Serena was out of the way.

Serena looked at the newly evolved pokemon, it had a dress like appearance in the torso and still maintained the blue color. There was some white antennae on top of her head and it was ferocious. "BRIONNE!" the pokemon known as Brionne shouted.

"Brionne?" Serena asked in awe as she saw the elegant water type.

Brionne turned around and smiled, "Brionne!"

Serena then found herself moving, not like normal though, she was making wave like motions with her hands as if she was being infected with a teeter dance. Suddenly, Serena exclaimed something she did before, "Special Z MOVE!" Serena then stared down her nearly defeated opponent with fire in her eyes. "HYDRO VORTEX!"

"Bri...ONNEEEEE!" Brionne shouted as she made a giant water vortex towards the Sawk and the grunt. The grunt could not dodge or get out of way so he had the only choice of enduring the hit. Finally, the revolving water engulfed the man and his pokemon sending them into the sky.

Serena fell to her knees since her back hurt so much, but Brionne smiled and walked over to her. Brionne then made her fin glow white and pressed it upon Serena's back. "Heal Pulse…" Serena muttered.

Brionne looked back at Serena and smiled, "Brionne!"

"Thanks Brionne," Serena smiled as her pain eased off and the blood stains slowly disappeared.

 **A few hours later still advancing in the route:**

Ash and Brock had found a place to relax and take a break from the travelling. Brock prepared some of his best food and as soon as Ash tasted it, he got deja vu from when they last saw each other. "Brock your food is as good as ever!"

Brock smiled at the raven haired trainer and said, "You're welcome. I have been improving my cooking since we last saw each other in Kanto." To this Ash smiled. Ash saw Brock as an older brother to him as Brock was there in Kanto with Ash since they were little. "I still remember the day that I got my first pokemon."

"Yea, I remember when I first met Pikachu as well, he officially became my pokemon just before I set off on my journey here in Kalos!" Ash replied while scratching Pikachu behind the ears.

Pikachu cooed to this happily, "Chaaaaaaa!"

Ash and Brock smiled at each other as they decided to take the road once again. As they walked the sun began to tint red across the land making Ash seem skeptical, "Brock… why is everything a little red?"

Brock looked and noticed what Ash was talking about and grew worried as well. Brock took out a pokeball and said, "Swampert I need you out here!"

The pokeball flashed white and out came the large Hoenn starter in all fours, "Swamp!"

Ash noticed this and took out two pokeballs, he figured making himself stealthy was a good choice but at the same time using a powerhouse would be beneficial, "Frogadier, Goodra you too!"

"Dra…"

"Froga!"

The pokemon and their trainers were alert as they walked through the dark area. Ash looked around noticing not much of the ordinary. The dirt road was being covered by forest on both sides and it did not look like the clearing was dangerous.

That is when Ash saw him again, the big fat man with red glasses and an orange suit along with men dressed in orange. He was there experimenting on the same green blob that Ash and Calem had saved days prior. The Zygarde core was in a glass cage and Xerosic had some machines hooked up to the cage… 'Had they actually gotten to it this fast?' Ash thought as he signaled for everyone to hide behind a tree. Goodra though, he was large and got spotted.

The man known as Xerosic turned around and noticed Goodra. Silently, he took out a pokeball that contained a large squid. "Malamar," it cried and Ash recoiled as he once had an encounter with this monstrosity before.

 **Battle Music Begin:**

Xerosic then smirked at the badly hidden intruders as he raised his hand to command his pokemon to attack. The Malamar understood and fired a dark pulse right at the tree, something that Goodra noticed really quickly. Without command, Goodra enveloped himself in lightning and fired off the crackling bolt against the dark pulse closing the gap between both moves. When the moves collided, a bunch of smoke covered the area which gave Ash his chance. "Frogadier quick use double team!"

"Froga...Froga…" Frogadier split into many copies of itself as it jumped out from behind the tree. Ash, Pikachu, Brock, and Swampert followed the same action.

"Great, Pikachu use quick attack right through the copies before the smoke fades!" Ash exclaimed while pumping his fist. Pikachu ran into the smoke that was clearing as it was portrayed to be a lot of copies of Frogadier. Pikachu then slammed into the Malamar completely causing the squid to recoil and fall back. Xerosic was surprised, but he did not give up. With a snap of a finger, three grunts surrounded our heroes. They all had Houndoom which is something Ash knew he would need help with.

"Houndoom use flamethrower!" the three grunts shouted in unison. The flame streams destroyed all the copies of Frogadier and threatened to engulf our heroes.

"Hydro pump!" Brock shouted.

"SWAMPERT!" Swampert shot a jet of water through his mouth that interacted with good strength on the flamethrowers. The explosion caused a lot of steam so Ash took the opportunity to make his move.

"Pikachu use thunderbolt! Goodra use thunder! Frogadier water pulse!" Ash shouted while pumping his fist out against the grunts. The three attacks went into the smoke with great power towards the grunts. The attacks collided and caused a large explosion making Ash and Brock look at each other with smiles thinking they had won… But they were wrong.

"Malamar use dark pulse!" Xerosic shouted.

"Houndoom fire blast!"

Ash and Brock went wide eyed. No once could dodge there had to be another way… And there was. Ash then put out a fist and exclaimed, "Goodra use BIDE!" Goodra put himself in the way of the large jet of three combined flames and the one spiraly dark beam and had a blood red aura start to surround him. Ash then went to Frogadier and asked for something very essential. "Frogadier save the core! Be careful when you do it though!"

Frogadier looked at Ash and nodded his response, "Froga...Dier dier Frogadier!" Frogadier then jumped into the trees in order to get the Zygarde out of his cage.

Ash then noticed he needed to get rid of the machinery so he signaled to Brock, "Brock the machines… Pikachu use iron tail on the machine!"

Brock then signaled for his Swampert, "Use stone edge on the machine!"

The bolt of electricity and the barrage of rocks starting going towards the machine and when they reached the machine the machine exploded into a million pieces. When Xerosic looked back at the damage he looked back at our heroes with a face that can kill. Meanwhile, Frogadier used cut on the cage and cleanly freed the Zygarde core from its prison.

The green core then ran towards the wild and instantly disappeared into thin air. Pikachu, Frogadier and Swampert now stood next to me and Brock watching Goodra battle the grunts. Then, the fire blast and dark pulse stopped and Goodra had a strong dark red aura surrounding him. Something Ash knew he had to get rid of, "Goodra, let them have it!" Ash shouted while punching the air in front of him.

Goodra aimed at the grunts and shouted, "GOOOOOOOOOODDDDRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAA!"

A large white beam that could possibly power through any hyper beam went directly to the grunts and the Houndoom and caused a huge explosion that made Brock cover his face, but Ash not flinch as his scarf waved in the blast. When the smoke cleared, not much was left but grunts with ripped clothes recalling their defeated Houndoom and running off.

Xerosic then smirked, "Confuse ray!"

The Malamar shot a beam that was headed right for Goodra, but before Goodra could even be touched, Frogadier jumped in the way of the confuse ray and started getting confused.

 **Ash POV:**

I saw Frogadier jump in and start to suffer from the beam of energy, but then I started feeling lightheaded and off balance. My vision grew blurry and I started to sink to my knees. I then tried to look around and I saw that everything around me was spinning. What was going on?

" _Pikapi!"_

" _Ash! Frogadier!"_

" _Swampert!"_

" _Goodra!"_

Those voices… I know them… Who are they?

Suddenly something snapped in my head making me arch back and after that, I saw the blurry ground approach my face and my vision instantly went black.

 **Brock POV:**

"Ash! Frogadier!" I shout with no avail. I quickly look at the two unconscious figures and then turn back to the man. Rage filling through me I command Swampert to attack, "Swampert use hydro pump now!"

"Swamp...ERRTTTTTT!" Swampert shouts as he shoots out a giant torrent of water headed for the Malamar and the large man.

I look over to the side and:

"Gooo….DRAAAAAA!" Goodra launches a thunder that combined with Swamperts stream of water that collided with the Malamar and caused a huge explosion. When I look over the smoke that cleared, I see the Malamar and man smirking at the pokemon completely untouched… How? I look over at Pikachu with shock as I see the yellow rodent looking like he has had it with the man.

"Pika pika pika pika pika pika…" Pikachu started to glow in electricity and I stood back as did the man and his Malamar. Goodra also started taking small steps back in surprise as to what was happening. Suddenly, I feel it, a drop of water fall from forming clouds in the sky… "PIKA PIKA PIKA PIKA!" the hair around my body stands up as lightning starts striking around us. The man got hit with lightning and the Malamar got completely frozen in place due to paralysis from the lightning. "PIKA PIKA PIKA PIKA!"

I see the man quickly take something out of his pocket as Pikachu jumps into the air completely in an aura of electricity which made me get down near Ash to make sure that I could not be in harm's way. Swampert and Goodra also follow me to where Ash and Frogadier lie. The man the struck the ground with some sort of smoke grenade causing a lot of smoke. "PIKA…. CHUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu engraved his fist onto the ground and through the thunderstorm I saw a barrage of electric rocks storming out of the ground in front of Pikachu rushing straight into the smoke.

" **BOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMM! (RRRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNGGGGG!)"** Suddenly, an explosion that sent an ear ringing blast through my ears and caused me to get pushed back a couple feet. I could barely hear anything as I looked at the giant yellow ball of explosion that came from the explosion area dissipate. I could have sworn that was the biggest electric move I have ever seen. When the smoke cleared… There was no sign of the man and his Malamar…

DAMN IT! They got away!

The clouds and lightning slowly fade away and I look back at the pokemon and Ash, "Goodra, carry Ash while I carry Frogadier, we have to take him to a pokemon center quick!"

"Dra...GOODRA!" Goodra announced with pride as he grabbed the raven haired trainer from the ground. I then grab the bipedal water frog and put him on my arms. Pikachu climbs on Goodra's shoulder as we walk to the pokemon center… it should not be far at this rate.

 **With Serena:**

"Brionne, after the Kalos League is over, should I go to Alola and travel there?" Serena asked her newly evolved pokemon.

The siren turned to Serena and smiled, "Brionne!"

Serena smiled back. Maybe she would go to Alola and see what other pokemon she could catch to aid her in performing. Serena then came across a clearing that caught her attention.

Closely inspecting the grass, Serena found what looked like battle markings left from a previous battle and one of them included some water… A water type move. Serena then looked at Brionne and asked her, "Can you tell me what pokemon that water can come from?"

Brionne looks at the moisture in the grass and feels it with her fin. After that, she goes to Serena and grabs her pokedex. Something Serena did not mind since she wanted to know why she felt like someone she knew battled here. Then Serena looked at the pokemon Brionne had brought up in the pokedex… Frogadier…

"Frogadier? Could it be?" Serena asked herself. She then looked at Brionne and said, "Thanks!"

"Brionne!" Brionne smiled while adorably standing in her back fins to make herself seem proud. Serena admired that about Brionne's personality.

 **Ash POV:**

" _Where am I?" I ask as I look around me and see myself in some sort of giant stadium. Suddenly, I see a bunch of people cheering for something. I look in front of me and see a bipedal pokemon crossing his arms. He has a blue coloring and resembles a larger Frogadier, only that it has a stronger build… more like a… Ninja?_

 _The pokemon has a large shuriken on his back, something that I had never seen in a pokemon before. Along with the fins that resemble me to even the red fin on the top of his head that resembled my hat. Finally, he had a large tongue that was… BLUE? Like my scarf? What is this?_

 _He turns to look at me and I see some strong determined dark red eyes, "NINJA!" It yells at me. A ninja? No way I guessed correctly._

 _My opponent then makes a move, I look closer and see my opponent is none other than Calem. He has Gallade, but this Gallade is a lot bigger than usual, he has a cape and a pair of strong blades along with a white coloring. "Gallade use leaf blade!" The Gallade charged the pokemon in front of me with green blades that seemed to go around the enhanced disks for arms._

 _Without consent my body moves and I out out my fist in front of me, "Aqua Blade!" Aqua Blade? A new move? Then I see through the eyes of whatever this bipedal pokemon is as I see a blue kunai like the one Frogadier has, but the same shade of dark watery blue that I sometimes see._

 _Just as my blades were about to collide with Calem's green one's my vision became white and the sound of cheers began replaced with:_

"Ash wake up!"

"Pikapi!"

 **The Pokemon Center room no one's POV:**

"Huh?" Ash's eyes shot open. "Where is Frogadier?"

Brock looked perplexed and pointed next to Ash to the bed next to him, "He is right there."

Ash looked to the bed on his right which Brock pointer at and then sighed in relief and looked down. 'What is going on?' Ash thought to himself. Ash then looked at Frogadier who was lying asleep with his chest rising and falling slightly from the breathing. Ash then looked at Pikachu and Goodra who were in the room and smiled, "Sorry for making you guys worry."

Goodra lowered his head to his trainer and hugged him, "Goo goodra!" Goodra was very kind for being an intimidating pokemon which is something Ash liked.

Pikachu also embraced his trainer with love, "Pika!" Ash then petted Pikachu's tail and Pikachu cooed with pleasure, "Chaaaaaa!"

"I have to thank Serena for teaching me that spot," Ash said with a smile while looking down at the electric rodent.

The name Serena caught Brock's attention though, "Ash, is Serena the same Serena from the master class that almost beat the Kalos Queen?" Ash looked at Brock and nodded. "She was amazing, I was sure she could have won! I also feel like she must have had the best masterclass! I watched it on television and she really reminded me of you Ash, no wonder she had it well, especially when you got her past the first round!"

At that last statement, Ash looked down with guilt, "Brock, her masterclass was a nightmare, well, it was until after." Brock looked at Ash surprised and Ash continued, "Be confidential about this, but she had to deal with performing with a nearly broken arm and let's not mention that I… Well let's say she had to perform with a broken heart throughout the first part... The second part though she was more confident, but crippled."

Brock looked down with sadness understanding how the Tripokalon was actually hell for Serena, something not many could see just by watching the television or being in the stands, "It's ok Ash, I am sure that Serena girl is proud of herself for making it that far."

Ash then smiled, "I am too, but I also wished she would have won." Little did Ash know, Serena did win.

 **With Calem in Lumiose City:**

The battlefield was large and on it were six pokemon, "Alright guys, this is it… We gotta get training so that we can have an amazing pokemon league performance!"

"Gallade!"

"Chesnaught naught!"

"Manectric!"

"Talon talonflame!"

"Salamence!"

"Toxic toxicroak!"

Calem smiled at his roster, "We will work our hardest and do our best! Who is with me!"

All the pokemon give out a battle cry.

 **A/N:**

 **I hope you enjoyed, next episode will focus more on our heroes and a little less on Ash. For that reason I introduced Calem and his roster. Seems like a good team IMO! (I kind of wanted Calem's team to be sort of like Ash's team, but in different ways!)**

 **As for Xerosic… I needed Ash to experience danger with Frogadier to an extensive point.**

 **I hope you enjoyed and remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **AmourshippingFan: Glad you enjoyed adding Brock to the story! I kind of wanted him to be there to add someone that Ash knew from the past into Ash's story. This is really my first step in adding more traveling companions… (Next chapter we go on more with this)**

 **Guest 1: Now now, let me not spoil it all, I have already written up to chapter 39 at the time I am posting this chapter. If I do have something I can tell you is: The chapters will begin to exceed 10k words at some point in the near future.**

 **Guest 2: Glad you liked it! I am going to keep going at it!**

 **NinjaFang1331: Not the best battle I have written in my opinion… Wait for the Kalos League! That is all I can say xD! Anyways, glad you enjoyed!**

 **HybridAshGreninja: Well, not in a long time… Let's see, we are on chapter 18…. Give or take… Give it around a couple more chapters. I wanted it to be at the perfect time, and if you did not already see the spoiler about it… I would recommend you reread at Ash's dream in the last chapter ;)!**


	19. Chapter 19

**Undisclosed Location (All I know is the song is Nightcore- Phoenix):**

"Here he is sir," A very fat man said as he left the room. His Malamar was behind a man, both with glowing eyes. It was something as if the raven haired man that was in front of the large tentacled pokemon seemed brainwashed and under the control of the red haired man that was standing across from him. "Malamar, release him," The larger man said as his Malamar made the eyes of himself and the man stop glowing. At this the man fell to the ground while panting and both the fat man and the Malamar left the room leaving the raven haired man in a red attire to be in front of the red haired man with a black suit and a Pyroar next to him.

"Thank you Xerocic," the red haired man said as the person in front of him stood up with an exhausted look. The red haired man then smirks as he speaks up to the person. "So, Red, your son has gotten stronger," The man with red hair that was petting a Pyroar said in an evil tone.

The man with raven hair looked up into the person that just talked to's eyes. "He is really something, being able to defeat my weakest pokemon truly was an achievement for him," the raven haired man replied sarcastically before turning his attention up and had a venomous voice. "Why did you force me against him… Against my family…?"

"Because it would be nice to allow you to spectate as you do my plans for me… Also, _Red_ , why is it that you did not go so hard on your son, do you want me to force you to use your strongest?" The man with the Pyroar asked with a smirk.

The raven haired man that was called Red looked up and tensed his muscles, "Lysandre! MY name is ASHURA, Red is dead, ever since Charizard... Whatever! I don't need you taking advantage of my loss to then make me your pawn." Ashura looked at the ground with a conflicted tone it was mostly because of the mention of his former name that was setting fire through him.

The man known as Lysandre looked at Ashura with fire in his eyes, "You almost killed your son, shouldn't that help you alleviate your loss?"

Ashura's eyes widened as a huge emotion passed through him remembering what Ash yelled at him in their latest encounter. Ashura then punched the wall with regret and anger while whispering to himself, "Why did you make me do it? Use brain control to make me turn on my family… My wife, my own son! I am through with you!"

Lysandre looked at Ashura with an angry face, Lysandre had wanted Ash dead for years now and the fact that Ashura could not do it for him anymore disgusted Lysandre, "Then what are you of use to me?" Lysandre then stepped beside his Pyroar. The fire feline looked at Ashura while growling next to his trainer. " _You are a big tie to me that's dragging me down, strike a match and I will burn you to the ground!"_ Lysandre said with anger. Lysandre then put his arm out. "Flamethrower! _Burn him to the ground_!"

"RRRROOOOOAAARRRRR!" Pyroar shouted as he emitted his flame beam from his mouth.

Ashura saw the flames get closer and he knew he had to act, with a swift motion he went to his belt and found the pokeball to the pokemon he would need to use for this situation. Then Ashura threw out his pokeball and screamed, "Aegislash use king's shield!" Aegislash came out of the pokeball with a flashing light in its shield form. Aegislash then put out a hexagonal shield in front of itself and the flames hit the shield and dissipated harmlessly off. When the Pyroar stopped his attack, Aegislash let its shield go down and went back to its trainer's side.

"Was not expecting less from a _pokemon_ _master_ and one of his _strongest_ _pokemon_ ," Lysandre smirked while crossing his arms.

 _Heeeeeyyyy! I'm back! Doesn't it feel, like our time is running out? I'm gonna change you like a remix, then I will raise you, like a Phoenix!_

Ashura then ran towards the door, "Aegislash we have to go!"

"Gislash!" Aegislash replied.

"Don't let him escape!" Lysandre shouted into an intercom with urgency that echoed throughout the hallways. Lysandre's voice had a large sense of irritation on it since he had no hope that anyone would even be able to defeat Ashura at all.

" _So we can take the world back from a heart attack, one maniac at a time, I will take it back,"_ Ashura whispered to himself.

Meanwhile Ashura and his Aegislash were trying to exit the location they were in while at the same time defeating opponents crossing the pokemon master.

"Rrrr...Gh…..! LET'S GO!" Ashura shouted as he ran.

"Aegis...SLASH!"

 **A/N: Last time was very intense, but this chapter will be more in the side of being calmer, except for what you just read I am guessing.**

 **In case you were wondering what side Ashura is in, well he was brainwashed the whole time and now he is free. Also, the fact that Darkrai is his weakest and that Aegislash was able to easily able to maintain a king's shield for a flamethrower of a Pyroar of a supervillain tells us that Ash has not experienced much of Ashura's** _ **true**_ **power in battle, but I have a feeling Ash will soon. When that time comes, I believe Ashura will show his most powerful.**

 **Also, I wanted to take this time to give some insight in the league and also, introduce something being teased a lot by me :).**

 **I want to inform you guys that the next couple of chapters, specially the one after next will be an extremely emotional chapter and I can tell you it involves Amourshipping. You guys can guess what may happen in that chapter, but you are only around twenty percent right (I have hinted parts of that chapter before). The real surprise in that episode is how things will occur in differentiation to the anime, being honest that is how** _ **I**_ **would have written that episode.**

 **Enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 19- The Legend of the Ninjas. League Training!

 **Coumarine City:**

 **Battle Music on:**

"Eevee use hyperbeam!" a trainer shouted.

"Eeveeeeeeeee!" Eevee shouted while charging up the dark abyss beam from his mouth. The Eevee then shouted the beam straight at a Victreebel that was attempting to use poison gas. When the beam collided there was a large explosion that shook the battlefield.

"Victreebel!" Ramos the gym leader shouted. Victreebel was on the ground with swirly eyes after that explosion which was an easy call for the ref.

"Victreebel is unable to battle! Eevee wins which means that _Hunter_ challenger wins!"

"Alright!"

"Eevee!" Eevee shouts as he runs up to his trainer's open arms. This truly was a win that they would be proud of.

"Hunter that battle was absolutely amazing," Ramos congratulated his opponent before handing over a badge. After noticing a complete badge case, Ramos spoke up, "That is eight badges, what is on your mind now?"

Hunter looked at Ramos confidently, "The Kalos League!"

"Wouldn't have expected less from a person that got top 4 in the Indigo League!" Ramos replied while shaking Hunter's hand.

Hunter thought back to his performance in the league, "Yea, I remembered that semi final match. Some hooded guy had a Darkrai that swept the entire league, but when he got to me, I used my Eevee to take out his Darkrai… but he also had an Aegislash that dropped the rest of my team. Rumor says that this man swept Lance, the champion of Kanto with just a Dragonite, but after that… He disappeared." Hunter looked down in disappointment, but then looked back up with a smile. "I have confidence in myself this time. I have my battle style and spirit to keep me going!"

Ramos smiled and accepted the battle, he knew this trainer was strong, but will he have what it takes to win? There are some other trainers Ramos saw interesting, Calem in particular, but then there was Ash. Ash and Calem were very popular and recently, Ash became noticed. This was going to be a good league for sure in his book.

 **With Trevor, Tierno, Shauna, and Calem:**

"How ready are you guys?" Shauna asked the groups as they walked around Lumiose city. The day was beautiful and people were walking up and down the streets ready for the league which would start soon. Shauna had just asked that question out of the blue and the fact that the three trainers were stuffing their faces with ice cream made them almost choke.

"Of course we are ready!" Calem practically shouted. "And I am going to win!"

"No I am!" Trevor interjected.

"Doubt it, I will win!" Tierno exclaimed.

Shauna sweat dropped at what was said. As the group walked up to the corner, they saw it, the newly constructed arena for the Kalos League on the top of the mountain. The stadium was hexagonal shaped and around it everyone could see the village in which everyone would stay as the league progresses. "It truly is closer isn't it?" a new voice spoke up. The four trainers turned around and saw none other than their professor.

"Professor Sycamore!" All of the trainers exclaimed.

"The one and only," Sycamore said sheepishly. "So who here is going to win this tournament?"

"I am!" the trainers that were ready to participate exclaimed.

"By the way, where is Ash and Serena?" Professor Sycamore asked In an attempt to change the subject.

Shauna smiled, "Ash is getting his eighth badge in Snowbelle City, of course Serena had to go after him." Shauna winked at that last part.

"Of course," everyone else said while sweat dropping.

"Could it not be less obvious?" Calem asked while putting his hands up.

"I guess not," Trevor replied.

 **With Serena:**

Serena was walking along the path that was headed towards Snowbelle when she noticed what looked like two people stuck on a tree net. Serena went to get a closer look and indeed saw two figures squirming in the net. "Oh my gosh!" Serena gasped as she saw where the net was connected to the tree. "Let me help you guys!" Serena then untied the knot that was on the tree and the net fell down with the two humans falling down to the ground.

The two figures then stood up, both had pale skin along with blue eyes. "Owwww," one groaned. It was a teenager about Serena's age. He was wearing a blue jumpsuit and he had some very reflective glasses. His hair had an electrical style to it and it was lemon blonde.

"Big brother, are you alright?" the other person asked. It was a girl, actually very small girl a lot younger than the boy and Serena. Serena noticed she had a brown top and the girl also had the same colored hair. Around her shoulder was a yellow sac and in this yellow sac was a Dedenne. Serena grew curious as to what these two were doing here in that net. The girl though, she instantly noticed Serena and grew wide eyed. "Thank you for saving us! My name is Bonnie and this is Dedenne!"

"Nenne!"

"I'm Clemont, Bonnie's older brother, thank you so much for helping us, we got caught in this situation sadly," The teenager named Clemont replied in a calm voice.

"Nice to meet you, I am Serena!" Seren replied with a smile. "What were you two doing st-"

"Greninja quick use smokescreen," a new voice was heard. A bunch of smoke came into the path and this made Serena and the others cough as they could barely breathe. When the smoke cleared they saw two figures in front of them. One was a teenager that had a red scarf around his neck and a blue attire. Next to him was a similar looking pokemon that looked like a slightly larger Frogadier. "My name is Sampei, I see that you must have fallen for my trap, my apologies," the boy named Sampei said.

"Ninja," his pokemon replied with a sinister tone. The pokemon had his arms crossed, it was a very formal pokemon. The pokemon seemed to be alert at every moment something that Serena found interesting.

"What pokemon is that? It's so CUTE!" Bonnie exclaimed very enthusiastic about the pokemon.

"Gren!" the pokemon shouted with a shocked expression. It opened its eyes which showed to be a pinkish color.

Sampei signaled to his pokemon, "This is Greninja, he is a ninja pokemon that is the final evolution of Froakie." Froakie. Serena listened closer now because she knew Ash would probably _have_ a Greninja if Frogadier evolved… "And today we are going to be taking a test."

"A test?" Clemont asked curiously.

"Yes, let me show you," Sampei said as he led the group into a cave found in a nearby mountain. The cave was dark and filled with Noibat, something that Serena found adorable since she did witness how powerful Ash's Noivern could be. The cave then led to an altar that had a portrait. Serena noticed it to be a Greninja in the portrait, only that it looked different. For starters the shuriken on the back is larger and there was a lot of facial fins that were different than a normal Greninja's. "This is the legend of my village, it is said that very rarely, a Froakie will hatch that contains the ability _battle bond_ , with this ability when the Froakie becomes a Greninja, it can transform."

"Transform?" Serena asked.

"That is weird, some pokemon like Darmanitan transform due to ability, what makes this significant?" Clemont asked.

Sampei turned around, "You see, when Greninja transforms, it gains a stronger water shuriken, stronger attacks and definitely faster speed. Only a battle bond Greninja can use the move _aqua blade,_ a dual typing water and dark type move… and only the transformed Greninja can use the _golden shuriken_." Sampei then opened a book lying in the altar, "The trainer of the one that appeared years ago was an aura guardian by the name Sir Aaron. Aaron used battle bond to fuse with Greninja and ultimately feel a battle with Greninja… It says here that Sir Aaron nicknamed his Greninja _Ash_. Because of that, the transformation was named _Ash-Greninja_."

At that last point Serena's heart started to skip beats. 'Aqua blade? Is that why Ash's Frogadier's blades sometimes turn blue? Is this why Ash is able to feel what Frogadier feels… Is this the reason why Ash even has this Frogadier, since it will evolve into the so called _Ash-Greninja_?' Serena thought to herself. Little did she know, someone noticed this behavior.

"Serena are you ok? You have been zoned out for a little now," Bonnie asked.

Serena snapped out of her thoughts and faced the little girl, "Yes, I am fine!"

Sampei then turned to the group, "Greninja, are you ready to see if you have the ability to perform this?"

"Ninja," Greninja nodded.

Sampei then held out his hand to the altar and picked up a small disk shaped relic that was blue, but a lot older as it had some decayed areas on it. Serena thought it looked a lot like a technical machine, what was it? "Greninja, if you have this ability, then this shall teach you how to use aqua blade," Sampei said.

"Ninja," Greninja replied with a nod.

Serena, Clemont and Bonnie watched in awe as the relic began to glow blue in front of Greninja. The light seemed to get larger and the relic began to glow blue. Then, the relic began to float and head towards Greninja who watched as it got near only for the effect to waste away and the relic to fall on the floor without color.

"What happened?" Bonnie asked.

Sampei smiled, "It seems that Greninja is not a descendant from the legend since he is not compatible with aqua blade," Sampei then turned to Greninja. "I'm sorry Greninja."

Greninja smiled and wrapped his hand around Sampei, "Ninja."

Sampei then laughed, "I guess you are right Greninja, we have each other and that is what counts!" Sampei then turned to the group, "I guess I should be on my way guys. Greninja use smo-"

Before Sampei could even command his Greninja he got a tug on his shirt. "Sampei," Serena said while kneeling down and picked up the technical machine from the ground. Serena then whispered, "Can I have this? I believe I _may_ know who the legend is."

Sampei debated it with himself for a while, but opened up, "Sure thing, not many people will come here anyways, so take it with you and find _him_."

"Thank you Sampei!" Serena exclaimed as she put the technical machine into her bag. Sampei then Nodded and ordered for a smokescreen and with that, Sampei and his Greninja vanished into thin air.

"Serena, why do you have the move?" Bonnie asked.

"No reason, I just want to try something," Serena winked.

Clemont then spoke up, "Well if we are going to make it to Snowbelle for tomorrow we are going to have to get going now."

"Serena do you want to come with us?" Bonnie asked as the group started to walk out of the cave.

Serena smiled, "Sure, I was going there to meet up with someone, he is going to get his eighth badge and then challenge the Kalos League!"

Clemont then stopped in his tracks, "Did you say badge? Do you know who this is?"

"Yea, Ash Ketchum!" Serena replied as the group started walking up the original path. "Why?"

"Actually, he challenged me to a battle some time ago, he actually defeated me in a strong battle where I had to use my strongest." Clemont explained.

"He's right, Ash had this Pikachu that put up an amazing fight against Clemont's Bunnelby and won, then he used a Grovyle and defeated Clemont's Heliolisk, and lastly, his Goodra was able to use this intense bide that defeated Luxray, it was an amazing battle to watch!" Bonnie explained.

"Nenne!" Dedenne agreed.

Serena then smiled, "Actually Pikachu has gotten stronger now, Grovyle recently evolved into Sceptile and Goodra has gotten even stronger with that bide."

"Serena, are you that girl that almost beat Aria to be Kalos Queen?" Bonnie asked out of the blue.

Serena blushed slightly because of the praise, but smiled, "Yea, that's me!"

Bonnie then smirked, "Now I know why you like being around Ash so much." Serena blushed violently at this point. 'No way, even on TV a _LITTLE GIRL_ caught it?'

For Serena, this was going to be a long walk with Bonnie around.

 **With Ash, Pikachu and Brock:**

The trio was traveling through the path that lead towards Snowbelle, the mountains had become tall and cold so they had to put on a jacket (except Pikachu). Pikachu was warm due to his fur and with sparkling electricity could warm himself up. It was a beautiful scene and Ash wanted to make the most of it so he turned to Brock, "Hey Brock, want to have some fun?"

Brock looked at Ash with a grin, "Are you thinking what I am thinking?" Brock smirked even harder when he saw Ash hold up two pokeballs that opened up into two flashing lights that then shaped two dragons.

"Gruaw!"

"Noivern!"

"Brock you take Noivern! I want to try something!" Ash exclaimed as he got on top of Charizard with Pikachu. Brock nodded and got on top of Noivern. With a light leap off the edge of the mountain, both dragons flew into the sky with grace and speed. "Brock watch this!"

"Ok!" Brock shouted from his exhilarating flight.

Ash then turned to his glove and touched his keystone, "keystone, listen to my heart, beyond evolution!" Charizard was transforming through the prongs at this point. "MEGA EVOLVE!" Charizard finished mega evolving and turned himself into a black and blue firing dragon while Brock watched in awe. Noivern was smirking, he did want to have that power, but he knew that he, just like most of Ash's pokemon, don't even need it.

"Ash that is amazing!" Brock shouted as Noivern and Charizard landed in the mountain again where they had started. Charizard returned back to his normal form and thanked them for the flight. After that, Ash returned the pokemon into their pokeballs and turned to Brock, who spoke up, "So Ash, who are you going to battle the gym with?"

Pikachu looked at Ash while pumping his fists, "Pika pika!"

Ash turned to his best friend, "We will see, you, Goodra and Charizard are the most prepared for the league. We will see how Sceptile holds up, Noivern needs to work on his defences and Frogadier… I have no clue what has been going on lately with him, but it worries me."

The groups started walking towards the edge of the mountain, but Brock was curious about something, "Ash, are you sure that something is wrong with Frogadier?"

"Huh?"

"You see, when Frogadier gets hurt, you also get hurt. I don't know what the problem is, but it is like he is trying to _connect_ with you," Brock implied with a hand on his chin.

Ash also put on a thoughtful face, "Become me? Hmmmmm I have to research this later," Ash told himself.

"PIKA PIKAPI!" Pikachu shouted drawing the attention of the trainers to what Pikachu was pointing to. The trainers were met with a nice scene, a snowy city in between to mountains, the destination they were headed to all along.

"Snowbelle City!" Brock shouted with excitement.

"YES!" Ash shouted while pumping his fist. "Eighth gym here we come!"

"Pikapi PIKACHU!" Pikachu shouted as the trio started sprinting towards the city.

 **A/N: Ooooh, what is with Ashura? He turned** _ **good?**_ **Was he** _ **always good**_ **? So Serena is aware of a so-called** _ **Ash-Greninja**_ **and she also feels like she knows who it is… take a wild guess it was mentioned in the chapter.**

 **As for Clemont and Bonnie, to be honest, the story needed this, I was going to originally have Ash, Serena, and Brock be the traveling group, but the fact is that Clemont and Bonnie make just as much sense as to why they have to travel with Ash.**

 **So, next chapter we will have a Paul-Like person appear (we have seen him before) and let's just say he and Ash don't get along. I wonder how this will affect the gym battle tomorrow!**

 **Hope you guys enjoyed, if you liked please R &R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **AmourshippingFan: Greninja? Wonder what that means! Glad you liked it!**

 **HybridAshGreninja: I mean, why would I make Ash have a Frogadier and not evolve it? I am not an anime writer so I won't leave Ash's pokemon unevolved… Thanks Pignite, Snivy, Bulbasaur, Squirtle, Gible, etc.**

 **Guest: Glad you liked it, but I can tell you that things will escalate soon!**


	20. Chapter 20

**On the Mountains in route to Snowbelle:**

"Come on Clemont I don't want to miss Ash's gym battle!" Bonnie shouted. Bonnie and Serena were leading the group while Clemont was lagging behind and panting as he got closer to the girls that stopped to let the inventor catch his breath. Clemont reached the girls and with a large collapse fell to the snow on the ground.

"Bonnie you need to take it slow, I am dying out here!" Clemont said on the snow trying to shake the tiredness he was experiencing. Serena took out her navigator and looked at the route they were following.

"It says here that Snowbelle is still a little far, we can expect to get there tonight," Serena said.

"Oh man, I wanted to see Ash battle," Bonnie pouted.

Serena sighed and went up to the little girl and put a hand on Bonnie's shoulder, "Don't worry, I think we will see Ash battle soon!" Serena smiled as they all started walking this time at a pace that Clemont could keep up towards Snowbelle.

 **A/N: So we are ready for the gym battle :) I am hype as well. Also we get reintroduced to a person that Ash will have to go through in the future and keep in mind that if you thought Paul was bad, this is worse… Mostly because I like to exaggerate stuff on here and optimize the intensity to the very limit.**

 **Now Ash may be OOC in this chapter, he might not be a lot like Ash or Alain so keep in mind that it is for a reason as to why I wrote Ash in this way this chapter. Also, the fact that Serena, Bonnie and Clemont have not arrived at Snowbelle in time for Ash's battle will have a purpose and it will get clearer.**

 **I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 20- Ash vs Wulfric… Attempting to Win on a Broken Spirit

 **Snowbelle City:**

"Ash are you ready to battle the gym leader? I heard he uses ice type pokemon," Brock explained as he walked next to Ash. The trio was headed towards the gym and the snow was cold. The day was very foggy, but that was nothing, with their coats on they felt nothing.

Ash looked over at Brock and smirked, "I know a lot of the Pokemon in my team are weak to ice, but we will have to pull through." Brock smiled at the idea as they neared the gym. Standing outside the gym though… an unpleasant surprise came.

"Oh…" This boy smirked while looking at Ash and Pikachu. "It is that weak trainer with that stupid Charmander." The boy said in a venomous tone that made Brock flinch. Brock assumed it was Ash's rival, but a type of rival that takes it to this level is something Brock had never seen before.

Ash just clenched his fists. Anger started to course through him. Through clenched teeth Ash simply said, "What do you want Damian…?"

Damian just smirked and turned towards the city, then turned back to Ash, "I am just here to wish you bad luck, hope you lose, _stiff_." Damian then let out an evil laugh as he walked away.

Brock stood there in surprise and turned to Ash, "Ignore him Ash."

Ash just sighed, "I… guess…" Ash started to remember his recent losses with Frogadier and it was beginning to affect his attitude, more importantly, Ash's confidence. This was something Brock noticed as he and Ash walked into the slightly warmer gym. Ash was in a pensive mood as the trio reached the end of the long corridor where the TV came to life.

"Welcome to the Snowbelle gym, how may I help you?" The television voice came on.

"..." No response came from Ash that was staring at the door in front of him with blank eyes.

"Hello?" the voice asked again.

"Pikapi?"

"Ash are you ok?" Brock asked finally snapping Ash out of his thoughts.

Ash straightened out, "N-nothing is wrong…" Ash then turned to the TV, "I would like a gym battle please!"

The TV voice then responded in a cheery voice, "Alright! Just remember to wear a coat as the gym is cold, Wulfric is awaiting you!"

"Great!" Ash replied while pumping his fist. Brock still looked at Ash with a very suspicious look, something wasn't adding up to Brock about Ash. At that time, the double doors suddenly opened up causing the cold air to rush through the trio and stunning them, but Ash knew he had to maintain a burning spirit if he was going to win this battle. Sadly, he still felt empty inside.

Looking around, Ash saw a large amount of ice around the gym from the icicles on the air to the breath that could be seen when one exhaled. Also, one look at the battlefield and Ash noticed it was made completely out of ice.

On the stands stood no one and the space was occupied by Brock and Pikachu who Ash told he was not going to use in this battle. Ash slowly walked up to the trainer box along with the ref at the side of the field who was completely in snow gear.

The other trainer box stood in front of what looked like an ice throne. Ash looked at the throne and noticed a man with a jacket that he did not use the sleeves of, a large stature and a large beard on his face. Most notably, this man had a collar around his neck which Ash found suspicious. This man stood up and welcomed Ash, "Welcome to the Snowbelle gym, I am Wulfric the gym leader." The man then looked right at Ash's eyes and smirked, "And I accept your challenge."

The ref then looked at both trainers that were standing in their trainer boxes and started giving instructions, "This will be a three on three pokemon battle. The battle will be over when all three pokemon on either side are unable to continue. Do all the trainers agree to these rules?" Ash and Wulfric nodded to the ref who then raised his hand. "Great, now choose your first pokemon!"

"Beartic let's battle!" Wulfric shouted as he revealed a very large polar bear that stood on both feet. The Beartic gave a huge roar of power as Ash stood there staring his opponent. Ash found the Beartic somewhat intimidating, but reached towards his belt and grabbed his first pokeball.

"Sceptile let's go!" Ash shouted as he threw a pokeball into the air and out came the bipedal tree frog. Sceptile stared down his opponent and smirked as he was ready for a battle.

The ref then raided his hand into the air and lowered it while shouting, "Battle… BEGIN!"

 **Battle music start, Ash (Sceptile) vs Wulfric (Beartic)**

Ash wanted started things off strong, "Sceptile use leaf blade, let's go!"

"Sceptile!" Sceptile shouted as he made his green blades grow green and he rushed the blue polar bear standing in the middle of the room. Ash found it interesting how Wulfric was not commanding Beartic at all, he was just standing there watching the Sceptile get nearer. Sceptile reached Beartic and when he did, Sceptile made a large X shaped slash across Beartic's chest. Beartic recoiled back and fell in front of Wulfric. Wulfric looked at Sceptile with surprise, but not knowing Ash was falling for a trap.

"Sceptile use leaf storm!" Ash commanded while putting his arm out. Sceptile obeyed and launched a barrage of leaves from his tail and caused Beartic to fly into the air in pain. "Now slam Beartic into the ground!" Sceptile aligned his leaves so that they lead to the ground and slammed Beartic across the icy field. Ash expected a reaction from Wulfric, but Wulfric just stood there with his arms crossed. Ash then got the idea that he was falling for a trap so as soon as Sceptile returned to his side, Ash spoke up, "Sceptile stand there and pay attention to any move Wulfric can make."

"Tile!" Sceptile agreed.

 **In the stands:**

"Something isn't right. Why is Wulfric not commanding Beartic, Beartic has to be weakened at this point," Brock told himself. He also found it odd that Ash's battling was very confusing as staying alert didn't seem to attract any action.

 **Back to the battlefield:**

"It seems that I have already won this exchange," Wulfric said in a victorious tone. Still with his arms crossed, Wulfric shouted, "Counter!"

"Bear...TIC!" Beartic roared as his fist glew white and he started running towards Sceptile.

"Quick use dragon claw!" Ash shouted in panic as he watched the move come back in with a large amounts of force. Sceptile made himself green scaly claws and charged to counter the Beartic's fist. The gap slowly sealed between both pokemon and both pokemon were stuck in a stalemate between a green pair of claws and a white fist.

Wulfric then completely surprised Ash, "Avalanche! " Beartic made a gray cloud appear over Sceptile and the ice chunks fell on Sceptile making a decently sized explosion that made Sceptile return in front of Ash barely standing and really tired.

"Sceptile are you ok?"

"Tile!" Sceptile replied while holding up his fist.

"Good," Ash looked at Sceptile and knew he had to think of something quickly, "Use frenzy plant quick!"

"Scep...TILE!" Sceptile shouted as he punched his fists together and engraved them into the ground causing a lot of large stems to shoot out of the ice and breaking everything in sight.

Wulfric though, he smirked at Ash's move knowing he could easily counter it, "Use ice punch on the ground!" Beartic slammed his blue freezing fist into the ground and caused ice pillars to shoot out of the ice. The pillars stopped the frenzy plant from rising above the surface and then continued on to hit Sceptile. Sceptile was enveloped in a large explosion from the super effective hit, but still managed to get up. "What good resistance it has Ash, but can it deal with this? Beartic use avalanche again!" The cloud again appeared above Sceptile and Ash needed to find a solution quickly.

"Sceptile use leaf storm into the clouds above you!" Ash shouted. Sceptile obeyed and shot his leafs into the clouds and interacted with the falling chunks of ice which definitely could have been fatal if they had hit. This caused a lot of smoke and then Wulfric said something that left Ash wide eyed.

"Now you are open to an attack, ice punch!" Beartic swiftly navigated the ice and hit Sceptile with a devastating cold punch to the stomach that knocked the tree frog against the wall behind Ash who only had enough time to look back and see the smoke clearing from a clear dent in the wall and a unconscious Sceptile.

"Sceptile is unable to battle, Beartic wins!" the ref shouted.

Ash raised his pokeball and silently recalled his pokemon back into its pokeball.

 **In the stands:**

"This doesn't look good for Ash…" Brock replied nervously. Ash was not his usual self, the determination that usually was in the raven haired trainer was gone and for some reason there was not the same compassion he would have for his pokemon. Ash was not saying his "I choose you" catchphrase and even worse, he was not even praising his pokemon for their effort.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted while waving his arms. Pikachu also noticed the slight change in his trainer's attitude, something that put the electric rodent on edge.

 **At the battlefield:**

Wulfric stood tall with a smile on his face, "So, is that all you got? You're Sceptile was not strong enough to deal with type advantage and you definitely know that my Beartic won't go down to anything of that strength."

"BEARTIC!" Beartic shouted in agreeance. This stabbed Ash many times in the heart as he was being called out for being… _weak?_

"Don't take it personal Ash!" Ash heard from a voice from the sidelines.

"Pikapi pikachu!" Pikachu shouted as well.

Ash had more anger surging through his blood by the time he grabbed his second pokeball. He would not tolerate being judged by some gym leader and he was not going to let himself go down easily. "Noivern let's battle!"

"VEEEEEEERRRRRNN!" Wulfric watched in amusement as Ash's soundwave dragon went into battle with a deafening roar and fell in front of Ash.

"So it seems you can intimidate, but can you even battle?" Wulfric taunted. "Beartic use avalanche!" Beartic summoned clouds on top of Noivern that started unloading large amounts of ice chunks towards Noivern.

Ash pumped his fist, "Noivern use supersonic straight up break down the chunks of ice!"

"Noi...VERRRN" Noivern emitted sound waves out of his ear and shot them upwards towards the incoming attack. The pieces of ice started to crack and ultimately broke apart into a light hail that showered over Noivern and Ash.

Ash then put his hands to his side, "Use sky attack!" Noivern enveloped himself in a golden aura which glistened in the ice of the battlefield and flew towards Beartic who was holding his ground hard. Beartic once again took the hit head on and fell back on the ice with pain as he slumped over in order to absorb the pain. Ash took no mercy on Beartic at this point, "Use Boomburst!" Noivern gave a battle shriek and sent a beam of strong sound waves at Beartic who was in the ground.

"Ice punch on the ground once more!" Wulfric exclaimed with a pumped fist. Beartic did just as Wulfric said and made an ice pillar that could take the hit. As soon as the sound waves interacted with the ice, the ice began to crack. Wulfric saw this and knew he had to take a chance. "Use ice punch through the sound waves." Beartic punched the pillar and as soon as the pillar shattered into many pieces of ice, the polar bear shot through with a freezing punch.

Ash though, was prepared, "Use hurricane!"

"Noi...VEERNNN!" Noivern shouted and with a flap of his wings made a strong wind go through the stadium blowing Beartic into a vortex almost suck in.

"Beartic get out of there!" Wulfric shouted.

"Tic…" Beartic strained as he held onto the ground with his claws in an attempt to prevent getting sucked into the vortex being created by Noivern.

"That's it, USE COUNTER TOWARDS THE DIRECTION OF THE VORTEX!" Wulfric exclaimed while putting out a punch. Beartic made his fist glow white and jumped into the hurricane which is something Ash needed as Ash was smirking.

"Noivern quick slam the hurricane into the ground!" Ash shouted while punching the ice floor with his fist. Noivern gave a battle cry and caused the wind to head in a spiral direction towards the ground hurting the Beartic even more with a large _thud_. Beartic slowly stood up, but Ash saw his final opportunity, "Finish this off with sky attack!"

"Noi...VEERRRRR!"Noivern shouted as he glowed gold and flew towards Beartic with great speed. The attack was swift and clean and Noivern slashed right through and with a smirk came out the other side while Beartic suffered a large explosion from where he was standing. Beartic then fell down and lost consciousness which is something the ref took no time to realize.

"Beartic is unable to battle, Noivern wins!" the ref exclaimed holding up the respective flags.

 **Stands:**

"Yes, way to bring it back Ash!" Brock shouted.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted again more happy with the results of the battle.

 **Back in the Battlefield:**

"It took you this long to get past your first test?" Wulfric asked unconvinced while retreating his fallen polar bear. "Let's just see how you handle this one, Avalugg let's go!" Wulfric threw out a pokeball which split into a flashing light that made the giant ice table like pokemon fall on the ground with a loud crash. The pokemon stood in all fours and was ready my make things hard for Ash. Wulfric then smirked and pumped a fist, "Use gyro ball!"

"Avalugg!" Avalugg shouted as he started to spin like a top, something Ash had never seen used before. The pokemon was headed right for Noivern who was in the ground.

Ash knew he needed to avoid the attack, "Noivern fly!" Noivern spread out his bat like wings and took to the skies in order to prevent getting hit by the gyro ball that came down with a lot of speed. Avalugg was still spinning and Noivern was above it. Ash knew he needed to try and use a move to stop the spinning. "Noivern use boomburst straight down!"

"Noi...VERRRRRNNN!" Noivern shouted while emitting his sound wave beam down towards the spinning ice type. The gap closed and there was a small explosion to which Ash celebrated a little, but Wulfric kept smirking knowing Ash had probably messed up again.

"Sky Attack!"

Wulfric knew he needed to execute his plan right away if he was to stop Noivern from using his physical charge. Noivern made the gold veil and was going to going straight for Avalugg when Wulfric put out his fist. "Avalugg stop it with ice fang!" Avalugg made a pair of freezing fangs that aimed straight upwards and trapped the falling Noivern making Ash flinch in shock. Avalugg then swung Noivern around and around and threw Noivern into the ceiling hitting one of the ice crystals.

Ash knew he had to do something quick so he did what he had to by pulling out a pokeball, "Noivern return." Noivern materialized into a red beam and went back to its pokeball. Ash then selected the third and last selection he would have to do for his battle. "Frogadier let's go!"

"Froga!"

Wulfric just stood there processing what Ash just did, "So are you too afraid that you had to switch? Specially into that pre-evolved pokemon? I was expecting something more intimidating like a Charizard."

 **At the stands:**

"Why are people attacking Ash emotionally like that, don't they know what Ash has gone through?" Brock asked Pikachu.

"Pika…" Pikachu hung his head knowing Ash could not take this emotional pain. Pikachu then called out to his trainer, but no avail as Ash either did not hear it or is ignoring Pikachu.

"ASH SNAP OUT OF IT!" Brock exclaimed with hope. Again Ash did not respond and continued a staredown between Avalugg and Frogadier. "I don't like this one bit…"

"Pika," Pikachu agreed.

 **Back to the Battlefield:**

"ASH SNAP OUT OF IT!" passed through the ears of everyone in the battlefield except Ash. Wulfric grew wide eyed knowing something was wrong. 'Ash is not himself apparently… Is it because of me? Maybe… I should probably be less harsh on him, but why is he in this state? Is this even Ash's _true_ power? Now I understand why he is battling so badly. I have to point it out to him as soon as this match ends then.'

Wulfric put his hands out, "Use gyro ball!" Avalugg began to spin and head towards Frogadier which Ash did not like one bit.

Ash spread his hands out and shouted, "Use double team!"

"Froga… Froga… Froga…" Frogadier shouted as he split into many forms. The gyro ball went through the forms and failed to hit the real one.

"Use water pulse!"

Wulfric grew wide eyed, "Avalugg quick stone edge around you to protect yourself!"

"Avalugg!" Avalugg shouted as it stomped the ground and made blue stones shoot out of the ground. The blue stones then surrounded Avalugg in a circle as the many Frogadier copies made a sphere on water on their hands. Then, the spheres got launched and interacted with the stone edge doing no damage at all to Avalugg. Avalugg remained between the stones and this gave Wulfric an idea.

"Now use gyro ball!" Wulfric exclaimed. Avalugg began to spin and the pieces of shards from the stone edge began to shoot out like darts in a three hundred and sixty degree angle which left Ash dumbfounded. The shards hit the copies and dissipated all of them while the real one got hit badly. At the same time that Frogadier winced in pain Ash also felt the pain. "Avalugg finish this off now with ice fang!"

"Frogadier use cut!" Ash exclaimed. The white kunai interacted with the freezing mandibles and that was when Wulfric made his counter attack.

"Use gyro ball!"

The first sight of genius struck Ash since the beginning of this battle and maybe the _only_ time in this battle, "Use your frubbles on Avalugg's abdomen!" Frogadier grabbed some sticky substance from his neck and swiftly threw it at the tip of the abdomen thus preventing any spinning for when Avalugg tried to use gyro ball.

"Avalugg use avalanche on top of yourself!" Wulfric exclaimed. The clouds formed from above and then the ice chunks slammed into both Avalugg and Frogadier and Ash again winced in pain when Frogadier got hurt.

Ash snapped out of the pain and shouted, "Use aerial ace on its head!" Frogadier made his limb glow white and slammed his fist into the head of the Avalugg. Avalugg let go of its grip on Frogadier and Frogadier slipped back on the slide. Ash then pumped his fists together, "Use water pulse!"

"Froga… DIER!" Frogadier shouted while throwing the water sphere and causing an explosion to happen as soon as it hit the Avalugg. When the smoke cleared, Avalugg was on the ground motionless.

"Avalugg is unable to battle the win goes to Frogadier," The ref exclaimed.

Wulfric quickly recalled Avalugg and grabbed one last pokeball from his belt, "Your pokemon are too tired, so Abomasnow let's finish this battle!"

"Abomasnowwwwwww!" Abomasnow shouted as a large cloud went out causing it to hair indoors!

Ash knew he needed to take caution so he took out a pokeball, "Frogadier return…" Frogadier returned to his pokeball and the Ash took out another pokeball. "Noivern you're in charge!"

"Vern!" Noivern shouted while staring down his opponent. Noivern then became pelted by the hail causing some pain in his wing.

"Noivern, ignore the hail, we have to win this," Ash stated in a serious tone. "Now take flight!"

"Vern!" Noivern replied looking at Abomasnow and taking flight.

Wulfric smirked, "Use ice shard!" Abomasnow let out some shards of ice from his back and they headed for Noivern.

"Dodge it!" Ash shouted. Noivern swung around the ice shards and avoided them very well, bit became in range for something else.

"Ice punch!"

"Aboma.. SNOW!" Abomasnow shouted while throwing his fist at the soundwave dragon who then crashed into the wall behind Ash. Noivern did not get up after that.

"Noivern is unable to battle, Abomasnow wins!" the ref declared.

Ash simply recalled Noivern and took out Frogadier silently. Frogadier crossed his arms as he looks at Abomasnow.

 **At the stands:**

"This is really bad for Ash," Brock said in a worried tone.

"Pikapi…" Pikachu said.

 **Battlefield:**

"Abomasnow use ice shard once again!" Wulfric exclaimed.

"Quick use double team!" The ice shards pierced through the copies that Frogadier made in a split second and once again hit the right one making Ash feel more pain. "Stronger...STRONGER! USE WATER PULSE!"

Wulfric grew wide eyed seeing this side of Ash, "Quick use ice shard again!" Abomasnow began to shoot seeking shards of ice towards Frogadier, but Ash had other plans.

"Use cut slice it!"

 _A risky move by Ash proving fatal._

Frogadier began by cutting the shards to pieces, but then the hail distracted Frogadier and made Frogadier get hit by the ice shard. At this point Wulfric saw his opening. "Wood hammer!" Abomasnow made a green log with his arm and slammed it into Frogadier. Frogadier was slammed across the entire field and crashed into the wall behind Ash.

"Frogadier!" Ash shouted as he saw his pokemon hit the wall. Suddenly, Ash's body arched back in pain and fell back into a sitting position in the trainer's box.

"Frogadier is unable to battle so the win goes to Wulfric, the gym leader!" the ref declared.

"Pikapi!"

"Ash!"

Ash's friends caught up to the hurt trainer.

At the same time, Wulfric came from his throne to talk to Ash. Wulfric was straightforward as he spoke, "Ash, until you are able to trust and rely on your pokemon despite your emotional and spiritual state, you can't win and therefore, I cannot give you a badge."

Ash looked down at the ground with his cap shadowing his eyes.

 **Later that night:**

"Hurry up big brother there it is!" Bonnie shouted.

"Argh, Bonnie wait up!" Clemont exclaimed catching up to his sister.

Serena smiled to herself as she saw Snowbelle in sight. "Snowbelle here we come!" Serena shouted. Snowbelle… Which is probably going to be called Hellbelle for Serena now.

 **At the Pokemon Center:**

Ash was alone looking at Frogadier as he slept. "I'm sorry Frogadier, I promised us we would be stronger… but it didn't happen." Little did Ash know, Frogadier listened to everything Ash said. "If I had only been… stronger…" Ash clenched his fist and spoke up again. "I am going to look for an answer, wherever it is."

Ash walked out of the room and walked into a reunion of friends. Serena, Clemont and Bonnie were talking to Brock. Serena was the first to notice Ash and offered a sympathetic look, "Ash, I heard what happened, are you alright?"

Ash looked at Serena and shaded his eyes with his cap. Ash went to the side of the wall and picked up a jacket while heading to the door. "Ash where are you going?" Brock asked.

"Outside… Alone…" Ash replied with a dead monotoned voice.

"At this time of night?" Clemont asked. Ash just nodded and opened the door into the cold night. The cold wind from the snowy land outside passing through the pokemon center and chilling everyone and making Ash's blue scarf wave around to the cold breeze.

Serena gripped her ribbon as she saw Ash walk into the darkness of the night and clenched it harder when the door closed and she lost sight of Ash. "Ash," Serena said to herself.

The night was silent from there on out.

 **A/N: Brutal… I know. I had to make Ash lose, how else will he grow?**

 **Ooc because I suck at writing? Or wanted to make Ash be painfully dead? (I purposefully made it so that he does not ever do many Ash things during the battle or even say "I choose you")**

 **Anyways I hope you guys enjoyed… Next episode is intense and will probably have a second disclaimer by the way.**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **AmoirshippingFan: Glad you liked that chapter… Although this chapter may have triggered you a little xD!**

 **Guest 1: On Ashura's name? I kind of wanted it to be close to Ash's and well, I think that Ashura would have been more cool sounding than "Ashton". Anyways, glad you liked the chapter!**


	21. Chapter 21

_**Recap from last time:**_

" _Oh…" Damian smirked while looking at Ash and Pikachu. "It is that weak trainer with that stupid Charmander."_

" _Now you are open to an attack, ice punch!" Beartic swiftly navigated the ice and hit Sceptile with a devastating cold punch to the stomach that knocked the tree frog against the wall behind Ash who only had enough time to look back and see the smoke clearing from a clear dent in the wall and a unconscious Sceptile._

" _Sceptile is unable to battle, Beartic wins!" the ref shouted._

" _Ice punch!"_

" _Aboma.. SNOW!" Abomasnow shouted while throwing his fist at the soundwave dragon who then crashed into the wall behind Ash. Noivern did not get up after that._

" _Noivern is unable to battle, Abomasnow wins!" the ref declared._

" _Frogadier!" Ash shouted as he saw his pokemon hit the wall. Suddenly, Ash's body arched back in pain and fell back into a sitting position in the trainer's box._

" _Frogadier is unable to battle so the win goes to Wulfric. The gym leader!" the ref declared._

" _Ash, until you are able to trust and rely on your pokemon despite your emotional and spiritual state, you can't win and therefore, I cannot give you a badge."_

 _Serena gripped her ribbon as she saw Ash walk into the darkness of the night and clenched it harder when the door closed and she lost sight of Ash. "Ash," Serena said to herself._

 _The night was silent from there on out._

 **A/N: OK guys… I have some explaining to do… I don't know what happened to me, but this is the turning point in the entire story when it comes to the quality of my writing. This is definitely probably the very first chapter that I have written in this much detail and the quality of my writing after this chapter… You will have to see it for yourself to believe it lol!**

 **I hope you liked the recap of the last chapter. This is going to hopefully be one of the most influential chapters in the story. It is a little like XYZ 28, but it has its differences and definitely will probably be more meaningful.**

 **Personally, I feel like if the anime went this route it would have been so much cooler, but the way XYZ 28 was handled in the anime was very inspiring and well done so that is why I am trying to improve upon it.**

 **Again, it will not be perfect, but I will try my best.**

 **I hope you enjoy this chapter :).**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or the song I used ;)**

 **Disclaimer 2 please read: Violence in words and actions, there may not be blood, but it will BE intense and possibly worse than chapter 13 (This is not much of a spoiler, you can already tell this is inevitable). There is also a lot of POV changing.**

Chapter 21- _Love_ is _Key_ to Find an Answer Under the Snowy Pines

 **That night at the pokemon center:**

Frogadier could not rest. His trainer's words kept bouncing up and about in his head. 'I Promised we would have become stronger' they said. Frogadier thought about it. What makes something stronger?

" _It is love,"_ Olympia's words echoed through Frogadier's mind. Frogadier got up from his bed feeling a little sore from the battle the day prior, but he walked out of the room trying not to make a sound. As soon as he was halfway across the hallway to the door, he noticed a faint blue color flowing from a backpack… Serena's backpack. Frogadier looked and saw that Serena in the corner of the room curled up into a ball and staring out the window while gripping her ribbon. Frogadier made his way to her bag and noticed a disk shaped object begin to glow harder and Frogadier reached for it.

Suddenly, the disk turned to dust and the glowing dust went into Frogadier and made Frogadier's body glow. The glowing then died down and Frogadier looked back at Serena. Serena still was staring out the window like if nothing had happened.

With that, Serena just felt the door and the breeze from outside come in and send a chill up her spine. When she looked back, she saw nothing but the door to the outside shut closed, something that she did not pay attention to since she was too focused on Ash.

 **Outside in the pines of the forest:**

The female Pichu looked down from her tree and noticed that there was a boy sitting in a log. The log was in the middle of the clearing and the night sky was overshadowing this boy. Pichu then blinked as she could have sworn that she saw the boy be replaced with what looked like a Pikachu. Pichu blinked again and then it was the boy again.

"Pichu…" Pichu sighed as she entered her tree again only to notice that there was no more berries left for the rest of the winter. Pichu sighed at that as she looked outwards and into the forest. She knew at that moment that she would not be able to make it alone, she needs someone to help her do something other than just hibernating in the tree.

"CHU PI!" Pichu cried as she jumped from her tree without looking back and hitting the snow below with ease. Pichu then looked forward and began to walk into the forest… In search of someone to be her companion.

 **The next morning:**

"Frogadier too?" Brock asked worryingly as he spoke to Clemont.

Clemont nodded, "Yes, Nurse Joy told me this morning." At that very moment, Bonnie came into the room.

"Hey, where is Ash?" Bonnie asked her brother who was cooking with Brock.

Clemont just sighed and said, "He'll be back don't worry…"

Brock then decided to help, "He will get hungry and come back, don't worry!"

"Pikachu…" Pikachu sighed sadly.

Meanwhile, outside the pokemon center Serena was sitting in a bench completely torn apart over Ash.

 **Serena POV:**

He's not acting like the Ash I know, the Ash I admire, the Ash I adore… the Ash I _lo-..._ ARRGH! What do I do? Can I do anything? What is the way to find this answer?! I look into the forest that have Ash's footsteps. I have to go for him… I need to… my legs start pounding on the snow as I propel myself into the pine forest in front of me…

All I need to do is get to Ash.

 **Ash POV:**

I have been walking around this log for hours now. Ugh, I am so tired I am just sitting here. Strength… If I just had strength. Why am I like this when it comes to strength, why am I the only person that deals with this.

 **With Frogadier on top of a tree:**

Frogadier was looking at his webbed hands with sadness remembering all his battles since Olympia… a big amount of pure losses. Frogadier was the only pokemon to have not evolved fully, was he even strong any more? Frogadier kept questioning his own strength at this point. Frogadier then slammed his webbed arm into the tree he was on and snow fell on top of his head which he picked up and threw out.

 **Ash POV (this next part is violent so discretion is advised):**

What is the answer to this? I need to… no, that won't work. Why do I always have to be the-

" _Ash!_ " a familiar voice enters my ears. I look up and see Serena standing there with a her hand in her blue ribbon. She has her jacket on so at least I did not have to worry about her freezing to death.

I open my mouth and speak to her while holding my cap, "Sorry, I should not have made you worry…" I then looked back down at my feet shadowing my eyes.

 **Serena POV:**

"Ash, you know that if you have a problem you can tell me right?" I tell Ash with my arms out.

At the same time snow started falling around me and Ash, but I ignore it since I am trying to help my crush who is sitting on a log helplessly.

"..."

No response.

"Ash, come on, I know you can tell someone, I am here for you one hundred percent any time, anywhere," I explain from his first response of silence.

"..." Ash is still silent so I figure I have to keep talking.

"You know, once I really goofed up and I-"

"Why should you care about my problems!?" Ash snaps at me while standing up and pumping his fist out at me in an aggressive stance.

"Because… JUST TELL ME ABOUT IT!" I snap back as I feel like daggers have pierced my heart a million times. The snow gets harder and visibility starts to worsen for me. At the same time, my fists clench to the point that my nails are starting to penetrate my skin, which does not hurt me at all since I am intoxicated with adrenaline.

 **Ash POV:**

"Just… leave!... ME… ALONE!" I venomously shout in intervals so Serena can understand what I want.

"What happened to never givi-"

 _Never give up until the end… Never give up until the end…_ CAN SHE STOP REPEATING TO ME THE SAME STUPID SH*T I COME UP WITH? "Why should I care about that stupid proverb!? Why do you value such a pathetic saying I made up? Just leave me BE!" I exclaim on instinct and turn my body with my back facing the person that is causing my irritation.

I feel a snowball hit the back of my head like an iron ball. I rub the back of my head of the pain and look back at Serena with gritted teeth. What does she want this time?

"The Ash I know would never give up until the end… Ash stop thinking that way before you _do_ give up!" Serena retaliates back at me warning me. At this point I could barely see her face due to the falling snow, but I had to keep fighting my point of view. I _suck_ that is what I do, Serena just has to _admit_ it.

"YOU'RE wrong!" I shout back. "I don't care what you think of me, i'm just some other _stupid trainer to you and everyone else_!" That statement came out of stupidity and even I knew that, but the thing is that I don't want to be seen as a winner when I clearly lose. I'm weak gosh dang it!

I don't care what Serena thinks, in no universe would she make me feel any better than I am ri-. I feel another snowball hit me and I could have sworn there was a rock in that snow ball since I felt like something had hit my head harder than usual snow.

I turned around and the next thing I heard was something beyond my comprehension.

 **Serena POV:**

Out of rage, I kneel down and grab some snow not caring that I also scooped up a rock, form it into a ball and chuck it at Ash's head in an attempt to gain his attention.

I am just going to have to admit a _huge secret of mine in order to knock some sense into him_.

The snow around us is falling harder and harder, every time I see Ash he is starting to fade from my field of vision, but I had to stay strong. No doubt that at this point Ash and I were in a blizzard.

Here goes, my only chance of getting _my_ Ash back...

Knowing it would be painful to me, I opened my mouth and began to expel all of my bottled up emotions from the past and present.

"My father gave up on my mother and me when I was little, I wanted to be able to love someone that I would know would _never give up on me_ … I found that person _and he stole my heart_ …" I say in a calmer voice since my throat started to hurt from the yelling. At the same time, tears streaked down my cheeks. I walk up to Ash and give him a firm slap on the face, one that made my right hand burn with pain, but also caused Ash to grab his cheek in pain and grit his teeth… I just wanted to _squash_ Ash right then and there, but I knew I had not power to do that… "Ash, your father may not love you like mine doesn't love my mother and me... but _someone else_ loves you _more than anyone_ could in many different _unexplainable_ ways…" Ash looks at me confused, but I know what I have to say even if I can't thoroughly admit it without nervousness, still, I felt like I could say anything. " _AND I AM THAT… THAT_!" The pain turns out to be too much for me to admit my feelings and because of this I throw a snowball and hit Ash in the head thus knocking his over the log in pain. My voice was raspy and my throat burned from all of the yelling, but I had to keep going. "GIVE ME BACK THE ASH THAT _STOLE MY HEA-_ … ARGH!" I run into the blizzard with tears streaking down my cheeks. I just want to run and escape reality… The snow keeps falling on me and I can't see anything, I was sure I was lost.

I just want to run away from the snowy inferno of pain that I am experiencing.

 **Ash POV:**

I am lying on the ground looking up as the snow hits my face. I was still processing the words that Serena gave me. What did she mean by all this? It seems to be impossible to understand. I sigh, what am I supposed to do now? I guess I should just get up and… not give up? Why am I following the proverb I just bashed on…

Why did I bash on her? She didn't deserve this violent behavior. I see nothing in front of me, only snow covering my view.

What is wrong with me? Why am I this way? What should I do?

I think I should keep moving forward.

 **Bet on it- Nightcore (lyrics changed for sake of fanfic)**

I run into the snow not thinking twice as I start to mouth the words to a song I listen to a lot to remind me to never give up, " _Everybody's always talking at me, everybody's trying to get in my head…_

 _I wanna listen to my own father talking, but he just betrayed myself instead."_

I run up to a hill to try and try to see the most that I can, but I can't see anything… but I CANNOT give up now!

" _Did you ever, never get the things that you want?_

 _Did you ever, get on a ride and then want to get off?"_

I see a flashback of Serena's snowballs and slap. The pain that stroke me from those hard thrown snowballs and that hard felt slap I experienced that still stings, even right now.

" _Did you ever, hurt the ones you should have held close? Did you ever let go? did ever back down?"_

I narrow my eyes as I see the snow getting harder and harder around me. I have to run through, I have to find an answer. So I ran through with my vision white through the snow. The wind was strong and my blue scarf kept waving in the wind.

" _I'm not gonna stop, that is the way, to give it all I got, that is my plan, 'till I find what I lost, you, no you can_

 _Bet on it_

 _Bet on it_

 _Bet on it_

 _Bet on it"_

I find a cave through the snow and walk inside. I feel the cold air from the outside hit my jacket and I reach for Charizard's poke-... I left my pokemon at the pokemon center. What is wrong with me?

I look down at my hands and curl them into a fist. I won't give up now…

" _I'm not gonna stop, not gonna stop 'till I break my losing streak._

 _That's who I am, that is the plan, now I've got to fight._

 _Bet on it, bet on it, bet on it, bet on it, yea._

 _Bet on it_

 _Bet on it_

 _Bet on it_

 _Bet on it."_

I look out into the mouth of the cave and see nothing but a bunch of snow falling down. "It truly is bad out there," I say to myself.

 **With the gang at the pokemon center:**

"Bonnie where are you going?" Clemont shouts as he runs to his sister that is trying to walk into a snowstorm.

Bonnie turns around and faces Brock and Clemont, "I am going to drag Serena and Ash back here, it is too dangerous!"

"Wait, but Bonn-"

"PIKA PI PIKACHU!" Pikachu gets on Bonnie's shoulders and smirks. Pikachu takes out his fist and pumps it to Bonnie to which she smiles. Bonnie took this as the sign and rushes into the blizzard leaving Brock and Clemont in shock.

"Quick grab the backpack!" Brock exclaims as he runs towards his bag. "I have the first aid kit!"

"Right!" Clemont replied while gritting his teeth in worry for his sister. After the duo pack up their belongings to go into harsh weather, the two look at each other and nod while rushing into the blizzard after Bonnie, of course Clemont lagging a little behind making his best effort to find Pikachu and his sister.

 **With Frogadier (Frogadier POV):**

I jumped down from the tree I was on and tried to look forward through the snow. Dang it I have to find Ash… I begin to walk and try to shield myself from the heavy snow and wind that is attempting to blow me away. I am taking small steps forward and I am about to fight the wind and put my foot into the snow again-

"Ninja…" a voice enters my ears and I turn around to see a shining figure… it looked like an apparition since I could see through it. Looking closely, I noticed It looked similar to a Greninja which I recognized from being the evolution of my own species, but it had a large shuriken on its back and some red fins around the facial area, something that intrigued me. The Greninja stuck its webbed hand out and pointed in a certain direction. "Ninja Greninja."

Ash.

"Froga," I reply as I look over to where I am supposed to run. I turn back to the apparition and say, "Frogadier, froga," and bow in respect.

"Ninja," the Greninja smiled under its tongue scarf and walked up to me. The Greninja then put his hand on my chest and turned into bunch of dust. This bright blue glowing dust floated into my chest and made me glow. Suddenly, when everything was absorbed, I felt powerful and strong, like I could do anything with _Ash by my side._

I run to the direction I was pointed at and out of the corner of my eye I see a Bidoof about to be squashed by an incoming branch that fell out of one of the trees.

I run up to the falling branch and jump to meet it head on while making a kunai blade that sliced through the branch and protected the Bidoof…

That was when I looked down at my hands and see a dark blue kunai blade… watery yet dark… What is this?

I decided to ignore it and run after Ash.

 **With Serena:**

Serena kept running until her legs gave out and she fell in her knees. It was not physical pain that was killing her, but emotional pain. Serena had ran for some time and had not seen anything significant, only snow. Suddenly, as Serena tried to catch her breath through her running nose because of all the weeping, the snow started to cover up the snow fell at a less powerful pace with the wind, enough for her to see. Suddenly, she looked over to her side and saw a cave. She knew she had to go in there and provide shelter so she walked in...

Only to regret her decision.

Ash looked at Serena enter the cave and shadowed his face in regret. Serena flinched a little in seeing Ash there, but Serena was still holding a grudge.

Ash noticed Serena shiver and opened up his mouth as if to ask if she was cold, but he could not bring himself to move his vocal cords. Ash never felt this much regret before and it was obvious that he wanted to make up for it. Serena sat across from Ash while looking down with her oceanic blue eyes glistening and watery. Ash could not have ever thought of a more beautiful sight than Serena's eyes, but the fact that there was sadness in them killed his heart.

 _Because he knew he only had himself to blame._

Ash then looked to his left and saw a couple of Caterpie, Zigzagoon, Scatterbug and a lone Pichu. They were extremely cold out in the weather even though it had stopped snowing. Ash then got up towards the mouth of the cave and yelled while signaling the pokemon to come in, "Guys come on! You will be warm here!" Ash then flinched at feeling déjà vu.

 **Flashback:**

" _Come on guys, it is warm here!"_ _Ash shouted from a sheltered tree stump. The pokemon ran to Ash's lap and rested there with him as a rainstorm passed._

 **End Flashback:**

Ash recoiled with his mouth opening in awe and his auburn eyes glistening at the memory.

Through a side view of Serena's face, Serena is still looking down at the floor with her fedora shading her eyes, but a small blush and a small smile smile appear after listening to Ash.

"Pichu Pi?" A Pichu that had come into the cave went up to Serena while the others went to Ash. Serena was confused as to why a Pichu was rubbing her leg, but it made her feel connected to the Pichu. She picked up Pichu and put what seemed to be a female Pichu up to her arms. The Pichu rubbed her cheeks against Serena's and Serena smiled as she felt the electricity that came from it.

"You know," a voice finally breaks the silence between the two trainers. "I had an experience similar to this in Pallet Town." Serena looked at Ash who was embracing some pokemon in his lap. "When I went into the forest near Pallet Town I would get totally lost and then I would invite pokemon to the cave where I sheltered myself."

Serena once again shadowed her eyes and smiled. It was nice to be able to embrace pokemon at times of sadness. Even though Serena thought she could make up with Ash right then and now she did not know how to.

"Bedew!" a number of voices echoed throughout the forest and entered Ash and Serena's ears. Ash and Serena gently put the pokemon they were with down and went to check out what the problem was. From the mouth of the cave we saw a Weavile trying to attack some Bedew, four to be exact. The Bedew were trying to shield each other from the incoming night slash.

Ash reacted fast as he went to put himself in the way of the Bedew to shield the attack, but a blue blur passed through Ash's eyes that prevented the attack from coming.

Serena also went out to help.

 **With the group looking for the trainers:**

"Ash where are you?!" Brock shouted.

"Ash, Serena!" Bonnie exclaimed.

Clemont had his Luxray out and turned to him, "Luxray can you sense them?" Luxray made his eyes glow white and looked around the area in search of Ash and Serena, but his eyes did not return anything. Luxray looked at Clemont and shook its head signaling they are not here.

"Maybe they are somewhere else- wait! Look, footprints!" Bonnie shouted.

Pikachu got straight to work and jumped from Bonnie's shoulder. Pikachu then went up to the footprints and sniffed them instantly recognizing the smell. "PIKAPI!" Pikachu shouted and started following the footsteps. The others went after Pikachu at the same time.

 **With Ash and Serena:**

"Frogadier!" Ash shouted as he looked at the blue bipedal frog using a dark blue blade to interact with the purple one from Weavile. The Weavile recoiled back and grew angered. This caused the Weavile to left out a battle cry that caused two more Weavile to appear. "No way…" Ash then took out his pokedex and scanned Frogadier and this was new on there:

 **Aqua Blade:**

Base power 100

Typing: Water/Dark

"Awesome a new move!" Ash exclaimed as Frogadier looked back at Ash and smirked.

Serena grabbed the Bedews and brought them inside the cave, "Stay here, where you will be safe." Pichu looked at Serena with awe and as soon as Serena went out to help Ash, Pichu went after her.

"Double team!" Ash exclaimed as the Weavile charged up three separate ice beams. Frogadier split into many versions of itself and prevented the ice beams from making contact. "Now use water pulse!" Frogadier charged up a sphere of water sphere and hit one of the Weavile that instantly fled from the intensity of the attack. Then, a Weavile came at Frogadier with a night slash and Ash goes for another move being completely in synch with Frogadier, "Use aqua blade!" Serena instantly grew wide eyed remembering what Sampei said. The blades interacted, but the dark blue one dominated and caused the second Weavile to get hit back and run away. The last one came for Ash the same way and Ash commanded another aqua blade to which Frogadier went for only that this time the Weavile charged up an ice beam and fired it at the same time. The ice beam though, was not aimed at Frogadier.

Serena watched as the attack was headed straight for Ash and then saw Pichu jump in front of her and snipe a thundershock to counter the ice beam. The ice beam overpowered though and caused the Pichu to be hit backwards and Serena watched in horror. "PICHU!" she shouted and ran to the falling Pichu and grabbed Pichu in her arms in mid air and front flipped to protect herself from the fall.

The Weavile fled, but the danger was not over. Serena landed in the edge of a cliff with Pichu in her arms. Suddenly, there a loud crack heard and the snow beneath Serena gave way. "AHHH ASH!" Serena shouted.

"SERENA!"

"FROGA!"

Ash and Frogadier both are in shock as they see Serena start to fall down the edge of the cliff with Pichu. The duo quickly run to the edge of the cliff and what happened next made the necessary push to a perfect synchronization.

 **Ash POV:**

" _Frogadier, I want to save her,"_ I say in my mind.

" _Froga,"_ I hear as Frogadier jumps off the cliff and my eyes start to see through Frogadier's eyes as I see Serena falling with Pichu.

" _Dodge right quick! Then grab Serena and decrease your speed!"_ I command and Frogadier makes a sharp right to avoid any rocks that were in the way. I feel the G-force as I fall and the stress and adrenaline governing my motivation to save Serena. Then Frogadier and I put our hands out, about to grab Serena... when I see that I feel powerful and connected with Frogadier. At the second Frogadier is about to touch Serena, I see the extended blue webbed limbs glow white.

 **Serena POV:**

I was hanging on to Pichu with my eyes closed until I felt a pair of arms comfort me from the G-force I am experiencing. Through my closed eyelids I saw a bright light overcome my black vision of my eye lids…

Then it was over, the light was gone and I felt the pair of arms put me down on the ground safely. I slowly open my eyes to make sure I am alive, but I am greeted with a pokemon. It was larger than Frogadier, but had a tongue scarf… a blue one, and it also had red fins in its head as well as a large shuriken on his back. Instantly, I recognized this pokemon as…

" _Ash-Greninja,"_ I say to myself as I see the bipedal pokemon return to a normal Greninja.

The pokemon looks at me and Pichu and says, "Ninja…"

"SERENA!" I hear a voice next to me urgently, it was Ash who had gotten down from the cliff to check on me. Ash instantly embraced me in a hug. "Thank goodness you are ok," Ash told me as I felt heat rise up to my cheeks.

"Wait, that was, it was the legend! The famous Greninja!" I exclaimed in shock still processing the fact of the transforming Greninja.

"What legend?" Ash asks me while still hugging me.

Just ignore the fact you just saw Ash-Greninja.

I just could not help but smile, "Welcome back Ash."

Welcome back person that _stole my heart._

 **Normal POV:**

Ash broke the embrace and looked around, "Where is Frogadier?" Ash asked.

Ash then felt a hand on his shoulder and turned around to find bipedal blue frog with a scarf like tongue. Ash then knew what happened when he saw his limb glow white in the weird point of view change. "Greninja…" Ash said in awe looking at his newly evolved powerful pokemon. "Look, I know I made you worry and I am sorry." Greninja and Ash then stick out their hands and have a high five.

"HEY! We have been looking all over for you guys!" Bonnie exclaimed while running with Brock.

"PIKAPI!" Pikachu shouted as he ran up Ash's shoulder.

"Finally," Clemont said as he caught up with the group. "Wait, no way! Did Frogadier!"

"It evolved!" Brock exclaimed in awe looking at the stronger frog in front of him.

"Yea, at the best moment too," Ash explained thinking about the recent events.

"Ninja," Greninja interrupted everyone as he pulled out an aqua blade kunai and held it in front of Ash's face. Everyone watched curiously as Ash looked at the dark blue blade in front of him with glistening eyes.

Ash then had a flashback to when he first caught Greninja as a Froakie in Lumiose City. Ash then spoke up as he grabbed the aqua blade with Greninja, "Greninja, I am sorry I was confused about our power, now I believe we can do this… Let's take on this challenge together."

Greninja returned the blade and hugged Ash. A touching and heartwarming scene for the group, more specifically Serena.

Serena then smiled, "We should head back!" the others nodded and then Serena felt a tug on her jacket. It was Pichu and Serena understood all too well what it meant. "Pichu, you want to come along with me?" Serena asked as she held out a pokeball.

"PICHU!" Pichu smiled happily and entered the pokeball which instantly got captured.

"Wow, it is so cute!" Bonnie shouted.

"The family truly is growing," Brock replied as the group started walking back to the pokemon center.

Ash and Greninja were walking with confidence… The would reach this together thanks to everyone that supported them, _specially Serena_.

"Pika?" Pikachu asked himself as he just saw Serena capture Pichu. Pikachu felt like that Pichu was _familiar_.

 **Flashback:**

" _Pikachu pi pikachu!" a male Pikachu said to a female Pichu that the male Pikachu saved from team Flare grunts._

 _The female Pichu thanked the male Pikachu and with a slight blush gave the male Pikachu a comforting thundershock making the male Pikachu blush. The female Pichu then ran off leaving the other alone._

 **End Flashback:**

Pikachu recoiled… it was the same _Pichu_.

Pikachu was a bit relieved that Pichu had not recognized him… yet.

 **A/N: Alright boys, I am ready and I mean ready for the Ash vs Wulfric rematch.**

 **What did you guys think?**

 **I know, I had to add the Pikamourshipping in the end. This will probably be so adorable between the two. Also, if you are asking why I am shipping a Pichu with a Pikachu… you just wait.**

 **Remember to R & R and I hope to see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **AmourshippingFan: Rated T Fic, this is was going to be 100x more intense than the actual anime… I think this chapter proves that xD! Hope you enjoyed and thanks for reviewing!**

 **NinjaFang1331: Thanks! Hope you enjoyed this chapter too! And thanks for reviewing!**

 **Guest 1: Damian will get what he deserves soon, for now though enjoy how Ash is OP with Greninja on his side! Also, Ash will probably learn about his father soon!**

 **Guest 2: Well… She fell off a cliff if that counts as getting stuck in the snow xD! Also, what do you mean by Lin or Belle? Anyways thanks for reviewing!**

 **Guest 3: Glad you enjoyed it! Yes, let's keep Amourshipping strong, why not? Thanks for reviewing!**


	22. Chapter 22

**Ash POV... play Pokemon Center song… Slow version:**

I was lying in bed staring up at the ceiling with my eyes opened. I looked at every single crevice that was in the roof of the room of the same pokemon center where everything that happened yesterday… Well, happened.

I look over to my side and stare at the clock in the side dresser. 3:46 am. I sigh, I am so excited for the battle I am going to have with Wulfric later on today that I can't sleep. My eyes then focus on something else. Right next to my bed is another bed with a certain honey blonde that helped me overcome my burden yesterday.

I look back up at the ceiling and hug my scarf as I remembered this girl's words from yesterday:

" _My father gave up on my mother and me when I was little, I wanted to be able to love someone that I would know would never give up on me… I found that person and he stole my heart… Ash, your father may not love you like mine doesn't love my mother and me... but someone else loves you more than anyone could in many different unexplainable ways…"_

As I remembered these lines I flinched as the sting from the cheek from where Serena gave me the painful slap returned. What was Serena's idea in bringing in my burden and telling me she has a similar problem? What did she mean by someone that loves me in many _unexplainable_ ways?

Who is this person that loves me?

Does someone love her that way back?

" _AND I AM THAT… THAT!... GIVE ME BACK THE ASH THAT STOLE MY HEA-… ARGH!"_

I stole what? Wait? what did Serena almost say she was?

I am so confused. I grip my scarf and turn around to look at Serena who is sleeping soundly. I look and see how she is in her pink pajamas and how her hair dangles around her face. A scene that I would call… Cute? Well, I am grateful to have a person like her always on my side. You know, now I am excited to see her sapphire oceanic blue eyes again when she wakes up… Wouldn't it be another excuse for me to not sleep?

I roll back on my back and stare at the ceiling again as I remembered the way I fused with Greninja. Once he evolved, we were finally able to feel apart… Like if I can become one with Greninja when I want and not all the time. I mean, when Greninja was Frogadier, it was like if we were the same organism sharing the same pain regardless of everything. Still, now with Greninja, I feel like we can be separated and individual, yet stronger than ever together.

But how ready is he for the league? We will have to see…

I am going to be using Sceptile for a rematch on Beartic, Noivern will play a role but I don't know how. I am seeing good improvement in Noivern's sky attack so I feel like he is prepared for the league…

Now how prepared is Greninja?

Only time will tell tomorrow.

I shut my eyes and roll on my side slightly peeking through my eyes to make sure that Serena was there… Smiling, of course she is smiling. Why am I peeking at her?

Sigh, just let it go.

 **A/N: Ok guys, here it is… The rematch… I actually have good amount of things planned for you guys now and I am starting to feel confident about how the story will progress.**

 **Also, I may like to inform you guys the reason I made up Aqua Blade. First off, I wanted Greninja to have a move that is not… how do I say it, weak. Cut is basically… idk why the anime decided to not give Greninja night slash, but instead a blue glowing cut. Still, I did not feel like calling it cut when I could call it something better right?**

 **So here is the ultimate move every pokemon in Ash's team that we know so far:**

 **Sceptile - Frenzy Plant**

 **Goodra - Unknown**

 **Noivern - Sky Attack**

 **Charizard - Seismic Toss**

 **Greninja - Unknown**

 **Pikachu - Electric Overdrive**

 **You may be guessing why some are "unknown". Well the thing is that those moves will not be revealed until later and Goodra's will be the next one.**

 **I know I made up Electric Overdrive, but come on, not every Pikachu has ever been seen using something like that!**

 **Other than that, today will be the day that Ash rematches Wulfric since the rotten mess he made out of the last battle… I mean, come on! Hawlucha in the anime could easily take out that Abomasnow -.-'... JK Greninja ILY (please don't fire me as writer of this story).**

 **Anyways, let's make this battle one to remember and open up the road for new opportunities in Ash's journey.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or** _ **Angel with a Shotgun**_

 **Disclaimer 2: Long chapters like this one INCOMING!**

Chapter 22- The Rise of Ash-Greninja

 **Ash POV in the bed:**

Argh, I fell asleep for two minutes and then woke up again and have not been able to fall asleep again…

Too excited.

I look over and it is 8:26 am… Time to get up in four minutes. Well, now I really feel comfortable in my bed and my eyes start to close.

Suddenly my vision goes black and I drift off into dreamland effortlessly.

Now to make up for the lack of sleep I had last night and-

" **MEEP MEEP MEEP MEEP!"** the alarm clock goes off waking me up. "Urgh," I strain as I shut off the clock. I then get up and notice that everyone was gone… wait what? I notice that their backpacks are still here so they did not leave. I guess that Brock went to talk with Wulfric about something and so did Clemont since they were up this early, but Serena and Bonnie seemed to be here since their pajamas were not in their bed like I would have expected. I open the door of the room and walk towards the lobby to where I see a table with Serena and Bonnie. Hmm, they seem alone with Pikachu. Like a zombie because of my drowsiness, I make it to the table and sit down.

Serena looks at me worriedly and asks, "Ash, are you ok?"

Bonnie then chimes in, "Ash, you look tired."

"Ohh, yea," I reply lazily as I raise my head up. "I am sleepy because I was so excited to bat- AHHHHHH!" I shout being woken up instantly by electricity rushing through my body. It did not take me long to find the culprit. "Pikachu! What was that for?" I shout at the electric mouse.

"Pi pikachu," Pikachu shrugged his shoulders as he went up to the table and started drowning himself in Ketchup **(not literally)**. I was woken up now so I looked at the omelette in front of me and dug in.

"Dang, whoever made this food is the best cook in the world!" I exclaim as the food pleasures my taste buds. Through the corner of my eye I see Serena get a pink tint in her cheeks and Bonnie winks at her.

I wonder what that was all about.

 **Later entering the Snowbelle gym (Normal POV):**

The door opened and the group of five and the electric rodent were met with the warm air of the hallway leading to the gym. It was a decently long hallway and everyone was getting excited. "Pikapi, Pikachu?" Pikachu asked his raven haired trainer as he walked towards the door.

The trainer looked down at Pikachu and petted him in the head, "Sorry bud, but I am battling with the same team as last time, I want a rematch against them. Also, I have a feeling you could defeat anything with that new move of yours."

"New move?" Clemont asked with curiosity. "What new move could have Pikachu learned?" Serena and Bonnie also got in close to listen to what Ash had to say.

Ash was about to speak when Brock interrupted, "It is an amazing move, I saw it during an incident that happened before we got here, but the thing is that the move is probably the strongest electric type move I have ever seen."

The group kept walking as Ash continued filling in what Brock could not explain, "The move is called Electric Overdrive… and even I don't know what or how it happens, but yes, it is very powerful."

The group then reached the end of the tunnel and were greeted by a group of five small pokemon. Ash curiously took out his pokedex and figured out they were Bergmite. "So KAWAI!" Bonnie exclaimed as she looked at them.

"Bergmite, right when Clemont and I talked with Wulfric this morning, he said that Bergmite evolve into Avalugg…" Brock explained. "Avalugg is also known to be very powerful with their gyro ball."

Ash nodded at this remembering the last battle knowing that Avalugg really was a problem for him. Ash then looked up at the monitor above the metal doors that had the gym symbol on it and waited for the voice to return.

Suddenly, the monitor spoke above the group, "Welcome to the Snowbelle gym, how may we help you?"

Ash then looked up and said, "I would like a rematch please."

The monitor then replied, "Good, we have been waiting for you. For now wait a minute as we get preparations for the battle finished, also remember to wear a jacket as the gym is cold." Ash nodded at this and from the group of four behind him, the honey blond female that was gripping her ribbon with her life stepped forward.

"Ash…"

When Ash heard Serena's voice he could feel the worry from what happened before. Ash then turned around with a smile, "It's ok Serena, I will win this time."

Serena saw the spirit burning in Ash's voice and gave a small smile while nodding her head. It was true Ash was back to his old self and she could appreciate her feelings for helping her snap him out of those troublesome thoughts.

Suddenly, steam appeared from under the door as the doors parted apart slowly. The Bergmite rushed into the cold air that chilled the spines of the group and made Ash's scarf wave around a little bit. Ash looked at the field. Still a lot of ice on it so it was a completely frozen field. Looking around the stands actually had people and the ice on the roof seemed as pointy as ever.

Ash wondered what could happen if a pokemon hit those pointy icicles.

"Good luck Ash," Brock and Clemont wished their raven haired friend before going to the stands.

Bonnie fist bumped Ash and wished him good luck and then one last person was left… Serena. Ash then spoke up, "Here Serena." Ash then removed his jacket and gave it to her with a smile.

"But Ash, won't you be cold?" Serena asked worryingly.

"Nah, I have the scarf you gave me, and my newly renewed burning spirit… which you also gave me," Ash rubbed the back of his head in that last assertion as Serena grabbed the jacket. "Also, take good care of Pikachu for me."

"Pika pika!" Pikachu shouted as he hopped on Serena's shoulder making the honey blond smile.

"Ok Ash, and one last thing," Serena blushed as she said it and leaned in...

 **Scroll down :)**

Ash gave a confused look and Serena looked like she gave second thoughts on something. So she aimed for his ear and whispered something, "Go get him Ash."

Ash looked at Serena and pumped his fist, "Right!"

"See you after the battle then," Serena replied and left to the stands while apparently cursing herself out on something. Ash ignored it as he watched Serena sit next to Bonnie.

 **At the stands:**

"You wanted to kiss him didn't you?" Bonnie asked the honey blond girl with an amused grin.

At this comment Serena blushed and flinched.

Brock noticed this too and held his chin while muttering to himself, "Interesting."

 **With Ash:**

Ash turned his attention to the field and walked up to the frozen trainer box as he looked at the throne in front of him noticing the same bearded man with a jacket that did not protect him. Ash saw him step down from the ice throne and walked over to the field.

Then man then locked in a staredown with Ash. He then spoke up, "I see you have come to rematch me, Ash."

"..."

Wulfric then grinned and looked at Ash with intimidating eyes, "How about that last battle where you fell apart?" Ash took it personally and narrowed his eyes at Wulfric in a venomous way. Wulfric looked at Ash's serious expression and smirked, "forget I said that last part, how about you show me if you even deserve a badge."

Both trainers then turned to the ref, who was in a jacket and had ear muffs, "This will be a three on three battle. The battle will be over when one side has lost all three pokemon. Additionally, only the challenger can substitute pokemon… Now do both trainers agree?"

Ash and Wulfric both nodded at the last statement with eagerness to begin the battle.

The ref noticed this and announced, "Now choose your first pokemon!"

"Let's go Beartic!" Wulfric exclaimed as he threw out a pokeball that materialized into a large polar bear like pokemon that stood tall and intimidating.

"BEARTIC!" The Beartic roared with strength that made a slight shock wave through the stadium. The shock wave reached Ash and his scarf violently waved, but Ash did not flinch at all… instead he smirked.

"Sceptile I choose you!" Ash exclaimed his trademark statement while throwing a pokeball that had the same Sceptile who had a twig as a toothpick materialize from a flashing bright light.

"SCEPTILE!" the tree frog growled at the same volume as Beartic causing Wulfric's jacket to wave around in the blast. Without flinching, Wulfric also smirked.

"So you chose that Sceptile," Wulfric said calmly while crossing his arms.

Ash smirked, "I feel like Sceptile wants a rematch, isn't that right bud?"

"Tile!" Sceptile pumped his fist at Ash with a smile.

 **At the stands:**

"Best of luck Ash," Serena muttered to herself as she clenched her fists with nervousness.

"This is gonna be a great battle!" someone from behind shouted.

"Good luck Wulfric, this guy doesn't look like he fools around!" another person exclaimed as a shower of good lucks to Wulfric from his supporters came from the stands.

"Go Wulfric!"

"Show him how to battle!"

"Destroy his fire Wulfric!"

People cheered on Wulfric, but our heroes kept things loud for Ash.

"PIKA PIKAPI PIKACHU!" Pikachu exclaimed from Serena's lap.

"GO ASH GO GO GO!" Bonnie exclaimed.

"COME ON ASH!" Brock shouted through cupped hands.

"This will be interesting, no doubt," Clemont stated with serious eyes as he watched the pokemon engage in a staredown.

 **At the battlefield:**

The ref seemed rather intimidated by the pokemon that were staring at him with venomous eyes to start the battle, so he did just that as he put his arm down.

"BATTLE… BEGIN!"

 **Battle music begin! Ash (Sceptile) vs Wulfric (Beartic):**

"Ash, you can have the first move," Wulfric said while crossing his arms.

Ash then snickered and also crossed his arms, "I have all day, I already know what you will do…" Ash then looked with fiery auburn eyes at Wulfric. " _Come at me_."

Wulfric and Beartic flinched at little as they watched Sceptile make a "come for me" sign with his hands. "Fine then, we will take the first move! Ice punch!"

"Beartic… TIC!" Beartic exclaimed as he made a freezing punch with his hands and started to run towards Sceptile.

Ash knew exactly what to do as he pumped his fist, "Sceptile trip him up with frenzy plant!" Sceptile slammed his fists together and slammed them to the ground. From the ground streaked some green plants that headed for Beartic who was charging at Sceptile. The plants then reached Beartic and stopped Beartic in its tracks while hanging him up in the air. Suspended from movement. "Now use leaf blade!" Sceptile made the lateral part of his limbs form a green blade and he rushed into the frenzy plant that had Beartic immobilized and sliced in an X like fashion the Beartic who crashed into the ground in front of Wulfric who looked amused.

"Beartic," Beartic groaned as he got to his feet and roared. "BEARTIC!" causing the gym to shake drawing Ash's attention to the ceiling. 'Sound… that's it!' Ash thought.

"Are you ok Beartic?"

"Tic!" Beartic pumped his fist at Wulfric.

"Good," Wulfric exclaimed as he put his fist out. "Use Avalanche!" Beartic obeyed and sent the clouds to form above Sceptile.

Ash saw the threat and knew there was only one way to do this, combat ice with ice. "Sceptile dodge back and use leaf storm at Beartic!"

Scep… TILE!" Sceptile shouted as he dodged back by backflipping towards his trainer and then turned around and fired a leaf storm at Beartic, only in time for the ice chunks from the avalanche to fall and get consumed by the leaf storm and mix in with the leafs in a strong attack. The wind filled with leafs and chunks of ice streaked its way toward Beartic and Wulfric knew he needed to do a risky move.

"Take it!" Wulfric commanded as Beartic crossed his arms in front of his face. When the hit collided then there was a massive explosion that send smoke in all directions. Ash smiled and celebrated a little, but recoiled when Beartic was seen standing and panting in front of Wulfric. "Ash, you may have just lost this," Wulfric smirked. "COUNTER!" Beartic made his fist glow white and charged Sceptile at amazing speed and slammed it into Sceptile's chest which made Sceptile slam into the wall behind Ash.

"Tile…" Sceptile groaned on his knees as he felt the indent in the wall support him.

"Sceptile, get up, I know we can do this!" Ash shouted trying to motivate his friend.

"Scep… SCEPTILE!" Sceptile shouted.

"Yea, that's the spirit!" Ash exclaimed with happiness and a smirk as his tree frog got in front of him with a grin ready to take out anything in his way.

Wulfric flinched a little as he watched Sceptile get up from counter which should have doubled the damage Beartic took.

"Sceptile, go in with leaf blade!" Ash exclaimed. Sceptile started to make his blades glow green and went for Beartic.

"Use ice punch!"

Beartic and Sceptile rushed each other and quickly closed the gap as the two engaged in a battle that took a lot of effort. Ash and Wulfric gritted their teeth as they saw their pokemon take damage from the hits. Sceptile got a good amount of hits, but the super effectiveness of ice punch really hurt Sceptile. Both pokemon backflipped back at their trainers, but Ash and Wulfric were not finished.

" **Jukain, doragon croaw!** " Ash shouted as he crushed his open hand in front of him. Sceptile made a scaly green pair of claws and charged the polar bear.

Wulfric looked amused as he gave his next command, "Ice punch on the ground!"

"Bear… TIC!"

"Scep… TILE!"

Both pokemon made their attacks. Sceptile though, he broke through the ice pillar that was formed and slammed his claws into Beartic who fell back in front of Wulfric. Sceptile returned to Ash's side and both pokemon looked at eachother with a smirk.

"Ice beam!" Wulfric commanded as he put his hand out with a fist. This caught Ash by surprise as the ice beam made a collision with the grass type. Sceptile fell to his knees in pain as the ice beam went through his veins.

"Don't GIVE UP!" Ash exclaimed.

Sceptile grew inspired by Ash's words and clenched his fist in determination. Fighting the streaking beam of frozen energy, Sceptile stood up and began to glow green. "Scep… TILLEEEEEEEEE!" Sceptile cried and made a huge burst of green energy swat away the ice beam.

Everyone flinched at this, Ash though he smirked. "You activated overgrow… and let's say this Sceptile has a _special_ overgrow."

 **Stands:**

"GO SCEPTILE GO GO!" Bonnie shouted.

"PIKA PIKACHU!"

Everyone else stood there with their mouths opened in shock and their was some confused murmurs around the stands.

Overgrow was that powerful.

 **Battlefield:**

Ash looked down at Sceptile and knew he could do amazing things now, "Sceptile has gotten a lot stronger now and it is out turn!"

"Like to see you try," Wulfric exclaimed as he put his arms out. "Use ice punch!"

Beartic started to make his blue fist, but this was what Ash wanted, "Let's go Sceptile! LEAF STORM!" Sceptile shot a large leaf storm that no one could even believe. It collided and made Beartic fly to the sky in a bunch of pain and slam back first into an icicle in the roof causing an explosion. "Now use frenzy plant!" Ash exclaimed as he put his arm out and pumped his fist with the other. Sceptile slammed his fist into the ground and the large plants that came out cracked the stadium and grabbed Beartic while slamming the polar bear to the ground in a large explosion.

When the smoke and plants retreated, Beartic was found in the ice completely unconscious. The ref took no time making the call, "Beartic is unable to battle, Sceptile wins!"

Wulfric praised his pokemon as he recalled it into red energy and back to his pokeball. "Alright!" Ash exclaimed as he celebrated.

"Tile!" Sceptile danced around happily still glowing green.

 **Stands:**

"Genius move from Ash!" Clemont remarked.

"This is already different from last time," Brock replied.

Serena smiled at these statements and said, "Yea, the Ash I lo- know is back." Serena almost slipped as Bonnie elbowed her clearly noticing the real statement. Brock just laughed at himself for what Serena just said.

'I can't believe someone actually fell for the boy' Brock thought to himself.

 **Battlefield:**

"So Ash, you got me there, but how will you deal with this one?" Wulfric taunted as he bobbed a pokeball in his hand. "Avalugg let's go!" Wulfric threw the pokeball which opened into a bright light that shaped a large turtle shaped pokemon that slammed into the ground with a large bang as soon as gravity affected the heavy pokemon.

"Avalugg!" the giant pokemon cried. Ash did not flinch as he saw that Sceptile wanted to keep going.

"Sceptile, I know you don't have much steam left, but if you want to keep going, then let's go for it!" Ash exclaimed while pumping his fist.

Wulfric stood there dumbfounded, "Wow Ash, you truly are a different person than last time, let's see how you do! Avalugg use stone edge!"

"Avalugg!" the Avalugg shouted and slammed his front legs to the ground unleashing a bunch of blue rocks to shoot out of the ground in the direction of Sceptile. With this Ash stood there and quickly made his mind on what he wanted to try since the rocks were not pointed at the top.

"Sceptile, jump on top of the stone edge!" Ash exclaimed.

"Tile!" Sceptile nodded at his trainer and ran towards the incoming rocks. As soon as he was in range, Sceptile bent his knees and landed on top of the stone edge and started jumping from stone to stone with ease. Because of the nature of being a tree frog, this was natural for Sceptile. Quickly gaining on the Avalugg, Ash knew he had to make another move.

"Now use leaf blade!" Ash shouted while moving his arms in blade like motion. Sceptile made his blades larger than any blade anyone had ever seen before because of overgrow and with this, slammed the blades into Avalugg who recoiled back in pain. "Use leaf blade one more time!"

Wulfric smirked as he saw this as a perfect way to stop Sceptile. As soon as the blades were at close proximation to Avalugg, Wulfric made his move. "Avalugg stop it with ice fang!" Avalugg quickly made his freezing mandibles and stopped the blades from going any further. Ash flinched as he saw this and knew he needed to think of something. "GYRO BALL!"

"Avalugg!" Avalugg exclaimed as he started to spin like a top and let go of Sceptile who started to jet towards Ash…

Ash knew he had to do something risky, "Sceptile punch the ground with frenzy plant and _aim towards me_!" Because of close proximation to the ground, Sceptile touched his fist to the ground as he slid on the ice and aimed the frenzy plant at Ash. The monstrous stems flew out of the ice in the direction Sceptile was heading and Sceptile was cushioned by his own plant. "Now run up the plant!" Ash commanded while pumping his fist. Sceptile ran up the plant that curved towards Avalugg and Ash made his next command. "Cut it with leaf blade!" Sceptile unleashed large blades and cut through his own plant about to do the biggest risk he could. "LEAF STORM!" Ash shouted as he saw the opening.

"Scep…. TILE!" Sceptile exclaimed as he started to shoot out of his tail the barrage of leafs which lifted Avalugg into the sky.

Wulfric looked amused at Ash's unpredictability, but he wanted to finish things. "Avalanche now that he is not moving!"

"Avalugg!" Avalugg shouted as he summoned clouds above Sceptile and made ice chunks fall on top of Sceptile. Avalugg then hit the ground with a bang, but amazingly stood back up. The ice chunks though, they made a huge explosion that made Ash flinch seeing Sceptile take the hit.

When the white ice smoke cleared, Ash had his pokeball out before the ref even spoke, "Sceptile is unable to battle, Avalugg wins!"

Sceptile glew red and returned to his pokeball, "Thank you Sceptile, you were amazing." Ash then put Sceptile's pokeball back in his belt and picked out another one that belonged to a soundwave dragon. "Noivern I choose you!" Ash exclaimed as he threw the pokeball that revealed a dragon with large ears that resembled speakers.

"NOIVERRRRRRRNNNNNN!" Noivern shouted so loudly that the gym shook. Looking up, Ash had one thought in his mind: 'perfect'.

 **Stands:**

"Noivern?!" People around our heroes shouted in disbelief. "That will get smoked being four times weak to ice!"

Clemont looked worried, "How can Noivern do much damage to an ice type? I wonder…"

"It is curious, he used Noivern last time and managed to take out Beartic, but I don't know if he will be able to do the same with Avalugg," Brock replied.

"Don't worry," a voice that drew everyone's attention said. "Ash knows what he is doing, he will win for sure!"

"Pikapi," Pikachu smiled at the girl that was holding him for having that much faith on his trainer.

"Serena, how can you be so sure?" Bonnie asked while putting a hand to her chin.

Serena smiled at the smiled, "I just know."

 **Battlefield Ash POV:**

I look over at Noivern who I know is going to be the main reason for why I will defeat Avalugg. I look up at the spiky icicles and look back at Noivern. Not yet, I still need to make sure that I am in the right setting. The ref then waves his hand down announcing we can begin to battle once again and I smirk as I see that I can begin my plan, "Noivern keep your distance I don't want to start shenanigans yet."

"Vern!" Noivern replies to me.

I see that Wulfric pumps his fist and says, "Avalanche."

I knew I had to move my dragon, "Noivern quick use sky attack and rush Avalugg quick!" Noivern envelopes himself in a gold aura and goes for Avalugg which confused Wulfric, but the avalanche formed when Noivern hit Avalugg… not on top of Noivern though.

I smile as I see the chunks of ice fall on Avalugg instead of Noivern, but I then flinch realizing I may have made a mistake. Wulfric pumps his fist and yells, "Gyro ball!"

"Avalugg!" Avalugg shouts as he begins to spin in the ice, Something that completely terrorized me. I saw how Noivern was hanging on for his life now. Suddenly I see as Noivern gets launched towards me with incredible speed and I have to call out something.

"Quick spread your wings!" I shout. Noivern does as I command and opens up his wings, and just as I had planned, Noivern stopped moving like a shooting star about to hit me. "What a relief," I say as if Noivern kept going he would have hit me head on! Now it was time to execute my plan. "Noivern use supersonic towards the roof, AS LOUD AS YOU CAN!" I exclaim as I put my fist into the air.

"Noi… **VVVVEEEEERRRRRNNNN!** " Noivern sent a shrieking loud barrage of sound waves that made the gym start to shake with extreme intensity. Many people covered their ears as they heard the incredible sound. Soon though, I heard a faint crack and crumble…

And just like I planned, the icicles from the roof began to fall to the ground.

"HURRICANE!" I shout through the supersonic with all my might as I put my arms outward. Noivern then flaps his wings and makes a giant wind appear throughout the entire gym that made people in the stands put their hands out and made my scarf choke me, but my goal was different. "Now aim the hurricane to take those giant spiky icicles to Avalugg!" I command while pumping my fist. Noivern aims the icicles and thrashes them to fall like a draco meteor on Avalugg causing a giant explosion that made fire in an ice arena.

"Avalugg!" Wulfric exclaims in shock as I see my chance to finish this.

"BOOMBURST!"

"Noi… VVVVEEEEERRRRRNNN!" Noivern shouts as he charges his ears and expulses a beam of sound waves. The tornadic shaped beam streaks through the sky and strikes Avalugg right in the head.

"Avalugg….." Avalugg groans in the ground with a shocked Wulfric watching the battle.

"Avalugg is unable to battle," the ref declares as he turns to Noivern. "Noivern wins!"

"Alright!" I shout as I punch my fist into the sky. At the same time, I see Avalugg glow red and go back into his pokeball which Wulfric put away in his belt.

 **Stands:**

"YES!" Serena stands up from her seat with Pikachu on her shoulder.

"Wooo! ASH!" Bonnie exclaims.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu happily chants.

Clemont and Brock smiled, but then exchanged a worried glance knowing something powerful was coming since their talk with Wulfric that morning.

 **Battlefield normal POV:**

"Ash, I have to admit, I am very impressed by your battle style," Wulfric said with a smile, arms crossed and eyes closed while looking down at the field. "You completely outsmarted and cornered me." Wulfric then looked up flashing his light blue eyes at Ash, "But I won't lose!"

Ash stared at Wulfric and smiled himself, "Then give me everything you have!" Wulfric was intimidated by this:

Ash was taking the role of the gym leader this time as he was the one asking for the most Wulfric can do. This was enough to make Wulfric smirk knowing this was a different Ash he was battling. "Who is this person I am battling?" Wulfric asked. "He is completely different from the one I battled two days ago."

Ash then smiled, looked at Serena who had a tint of pink in her cheeks, looked back at Wulfric and pumped his fist, "You are battling the _real Ash_!"

"This _real Ash_ is very strong," Wulfric remarked with a smile. "Now show me his strongest!" Wulfric then grabbed a pokeball from his belt and threw it into the sky. "LET'S GO ABOMASNOW!"

"ABOMASNOW!" The giant pokemon exclaimed as it fell to the ground. The pokemon then sent another battle cry that shot a blast of wind that made Ash's scarf blow violently, and before everyone knew it, it was hailing indoors.

Ash knew he had to give it his all now, "Noivern, let's set the bar even higher!"

"Vern!"

"Boomburst let's go!" Ash exclaimed. Noivern shot the beam out of his ears and the beam streaked and hit Abomasnow in the chest. Abomasnow then crossed his arms and slid on the snow to protect himself from damage and looked back up with an amused expression.

Wulfric then pumped his fist our and shouted, "Ice shard!" Abomasnow launched fragments of ice through the ground air and they were headed for the flying soundwave dragon.

Ash quickly out his arm out and exclaimed, "Dodge it with your echolocation!" Noivern quickly maneuvered through the air and used sound waves from his ears to dodge the incoming ice shards that seeked him in mid air. One shard though hit Noivern and there was an explosion to which Noivern started falling from the sky. "Noivern NO!"

"Ice punch!" Wulfric exclaimed.

"Boma… SNOW!" Abomasnow shouted as he hit Noivern in the head with a powerful freezing punch that made Noivern fall back into the snow struggling to get up.

"Noi…" Noivern strained as the hail caused him to feel very weak.

Ash then called out to Noivern, "Noivern I need you to get up, I know you can do this!" Noivern slowly got up and stared down his opponent. Noivern then flapped his wings and took flight once more. "Noivern use supersonic to confuse him!" Noivern shot a wave of sounds that were meant to hit the Abomasnow, but Wulfric had another plan.

"Ice shard through the supersonic!"

Abomasnow roared as he sent the ice missiles towards Noivern. This made Ash change his mind about something, "Noivern quick use boomburst to break apart the shards!" Noivern made his ears shoot out the powerful beam and the. They exploded into a lot of smoke that made Ash smirk. "Use sky attack!" A golden light was seen through the smoke and Wulfric had to smirk at what he had to do.

"Abomasnow swing around a wood hammer!" Wulfric exclaimed while pumping his fist. Abomasnow made a green log with his arm and started swinging around and around. When Noivern came by with sky attack, Abomasnow's log met with Noivern's head on attack. The two strained for a second until suddenly the wood hammer gave through and launched Noivern into the sky defenseless. "Ice shard!" Abomasnow shot five shards that instantly streaked and hit Noivern which made the soundwave dragon fall in a large explosion in front of Ash.

"Noivern!" Ash shouted in worry.

The ref noticed that Noivern was not moving and made his call, "Noivern is unable to battle, Abomasnow wins!"

Ash took out his pokeball and materialized his dragon back, "Thank you for your great effort out there, take a good rest."

"So, it seems we are in the same boat?" Wulfric asked while giving a toothy grin.

"Hehe," Ash replied very amused. "It seems so." Ash then reached into his belt and grabbed a pokeball. Ash looked at this pokeball with interest as there was a large amount of power radiating from it. It was the same pokeball this pokemon decided to be in when Ash first caught it and Ash knew he had to use him. "My last pokemon! GRENINJA I CHOOSE YOU!"

The pokeball was thrown into the air and from it came a bright light that turned into a blue bipedal frog that had a large tongue scarf in his neck and also had a white abdomen. This pokemon also had shuriken markings on its legs. "Ninja," he said with crossed arms.

 **Stands:**

Serena looked at Ash and Greninja and put her hands together, "Ash, take care."

 **Battlefield:**

"So your Frogadier evolved into Greninja," Wulfric said with crossed arms. "Very well then."

"We are so much more powerful now, Wulfric," Ash smirked as he pumped his fist. "Let me show you what we can do!"

"Ninja," Greninja said as he uncrossed his arms and put one in front of him while the other behind him in a battle stance. Greninja then had some blue sparks from the hail hit him, but the badassness of Greninja made him ignore it.

The referee ordered for the battle to resume so Ash took the first move, "Greninja, let's begin our first battle together strong! Use water pulse!" What happened next was not water pulse. Greninja reached to its legs that had shuriken marks and made two shurikens made of water with his hands and threw them to Abomasnow like disks. Ash looked wide eyed as the attack collided and made a lot of damage to Abomasnow who fell back in pain. Ash checked his pokedex to be met with a new move. "Awesome, Greninja learned water shuriken!"

"Ninja," Greninja smiled under his scarf and pumped his fist at Ash.

"Right! Use aerial ace!"

"Gren… NINJA!" Greninja jabs abomasnow in the torso with a white glowing fist.

"Snow…"

"JA!" Hits the jaw.

"Boma…"

"NINJA!" Hits the groin with a kick.

"Bomasnow…"

"GREN!" Hits the top of the head with a punch and then falls with his foot and hits the top of the head down. "NIN!"

"Abomasnow…"

"Gren… NIN NIN NINJA!" Hits the torso again, then the upper right chest and then the lower left abdomen with a powerful kick.

"Abomasnow…" Abomasnow grunted in pain as he was on his knees in front of Wulfric.

"Impressive," Wulfric mouthed his words in shock as to how powerful Greninja was. "Use ice punch!" Abomasnow got up and made his fist glow blue. Then Abomasnow headed for Greninja.

"Heads up Greninja, double team!"

Just as Abomasnow was going to hit Greninja, Greninja split into many copies and Abomasnow tried hitting all of them at the same time. One by one, every copy disappeared, but Greninja was nowhere to be seen. "What?" a perplexed Wulfric asked.

Ash then threw his fist out, "Now aqua blade!" Greninja appeared like a blur behind Abomasnow and made a dark blue kunai with his webbed hand and slammed the blade into Abomasnow's back making him fall in front of Wulfric completely dazed.

Wulfric looked at the battle quite amused because he now felt motivated to do something he has not done since his battle with Calem. "Ash," Wulfric started. "You have pushed me to the limit, so let me show you exactly how far I will go!" Wulfric the grabbed the necklace he had on and opened it revealing a keystone.

Ash's eye widened, "Keystone!"

"Ninja!"

"Abomasnow, show your power!" Wulfric exclaimed as he squeezed the keystone with all his power "MEGA EVOLVE!" Abomasnow then revealed his mega stone and the special stones began to show prongs out and glow. The prongs the connected and glowed white as Abomasnow began to change to look larger and more menacing on all fours. Abomasnow now had more snow covering him and behind him were four large crystals on his back.

"ABOMASNOW!" Abomasnow, now mega evolved, cried with a deafening roar.

Ash then smirked, "Then we will set the bar even higher! WATER SHURIKEN!" Greninja took out his shurikens and launched them at Abomasnow.

"Ice punch!" Wulfric exclaimed as Abomasnow made a freezing punch that slammed into the water shurikens creating a small explosion. "Now use wood hammer!" Abomasnow made a green log with his arm and started charging Greninja, which is something Ash did not like.

"Surround him with double team and then follow up with aerial ace!" Ash shouted as he spread out his arms.

"gren gren gren gren," Greninja spread into a lot of copies around Abomasnow that ran around. "GRENINJA!" Greninja shouted as he and his copies made all four limbs glow white and then charged Abomasnow.

Wulfric saw the threat and decided to be fast, "Spin around!"

"Aboma… SNOW!" Abomasnow swung around the green log and hit the copies until eventually the real one got hit and fell in front of Ash dazed.

"Ninja," Greninja groaned in the ground as he got to his knees. Then, Greninja pumped his fist at Ash…

Power connecting.

Ash and Greninja then both put their left fist in front of each other, "Greninja, let's win this together!" Ash exclaimed as he and Greninja pumped both their fists at their sides. "AAAAAHHHHH" Ash shouted as Greninja began to shoot a torrent of water around him. Suddenly, Greninja's tongue turned blue and there was a lot of features included like the red fins and the lightning bolt in the edge of Greninja's face. Significantly, the torrent turned into a huge pair of wings around Greninja's back and then solidified into a giant water shuriken.

Greninja then crossed his arms and yelled, "NINJA!"

Ash and Wulfric were both stunned and the ref was also speechless.

 **Stands:**

"What was that?!" somebody yelled.

"I have never seen anything like this!" another yelled.

Brock had too much bottled up inside at this point, "What the actual fu-!"

"Language!" Clemont stopped Brock from talking anymore while pointing at Bonnie.

"WHAT THE ACTUAL F*CK!" Bonnie shrieked in excitement.

The second Bonnie's words entered Clemont's ears, Clemont let out a large shriek of disgust.

"The legend, it was him…" Serena said wide eyed while staring at Greninja that had just transformed into _Ash-Greninja_.

 **Battlefield playing Nightcore- Angel with a Shotgun:**

"What is this power, Ash?" Wulfric asked with a smirk liking the challenge.

 _Get out your guns, battle's begun… are you a saint or sinner..._

Ash smirked and pumped his fist, which Greninja did at the same time. "I don't know what it is… BUT I DIG IT!" **(Yes, this is a Beyblade reference)**. Ash then put his arms out and behind his back, "WATER SHURIKEN!" Greninja did the same and grabbed the giant water shuriken on his back and launched it at Abomasnow. The shuriken made contact and sawed Abomasnow who got sent flying by the shuriken. "Now use aqua blade!" Greninja made his dark blue blades show up and jumped into the air to try and hit Abomasnow.

 _If love's a fight, then I shall die, with my heart on a trigger._

"Ice shard!" Wulfric exclaims while putting his arm out. Abomasnow gets up and shoots the missile like shards and makes them head towards Greninja.

 _They say before you start a war, you better know what you're fighting for._ Ash then looks at what he has to do and smirks. "If love is what you need," Ash narrows his eyes. "A Greninja I will be!"

 _I am an angel with a shotgun! Fighting 'til the wars won._ **Ash is swinging his arms like Greninja does his blades, left, right, 360 turn, cross in front of his face.** _I don't care if heaven won't take me back!_ _I'll throw away my faith babe, just to keep you safe, don't you know you're everything I have!_

"Ice punch/Water shuriken!" Both pokemon take out their respective moves and start swinging. Greninja being more on the defensive side as the freezing punches come through.

 _And I…. Want to live not just survive… TONIGHT!_ "GRENINJA!" Greninja shouts as he gets a great swing that stops the ice punch and hits Abomasnow thus hitting him back.

"Double team!" Ash shouts.

"Gren Gren Gren!" Greninja splits into many copies of himself while Abomasnow gets up.

"Aerial ace!" Ash shouts as he sees through Greninja's vision where he needs to attack.

"Wood hammer spin all the way around!" Wulfric exclaimed while pumping his fist and putting his other arm out. Abomasnow did just that and spun around in a dangerous pace thus causing the charging Greninja to get hit. Ash then felt the pain course through him and he grabbed his arm in pain.

 _I'm an angel with a shotgun fighting 'til the wars one I don't care if Heaven won't take me back!_

Ash did not give up though and he looked up, "Use aqua blade!"

"Greninja!" Greninja shouted while charging Abomasnow with his dark blue kunais.

"Ice punch let's go!"

Abomasnow hit Greninja in the blades and froze them over with ice punch giving Ash an idea, "Greninja throw the blades!" Ash then made throwing motions with his hands as he threw the blades that hit Abomasnow. "Now let's finish this, aerial ace!" Ash shouted as Greninja and he raised their legs in a large kick and with white limbs Greninja slammed into Abomasnow with everything he had.

"Ja Ninja… GRENINJA!"

"Snoooowwww…." Abomasnow was being battered by the hits and falls over in front of his trainer barely moving.

"Let's finish this, water shuriken!" Ash shouted as he put his arms out behind him. Greninja unleashed his shuriken and made it grow to a size six times larger than Greninja himself.

 _And I… want to live not just survive!_

Wulfric was at a lost of words as to what was happening.

Greninja then threw the shuriken with every piece of might he had. The water shuriken streaked towards Abomasnow.

 _And I… want to hide, hide…_

The shuriken is about to hit the giant snow monster.

 _HIDE MY WINGS TONIGHT!_

" **BOOOOOOOOOMMMM,"** the giant water shuriken slams into Abomasnow and causes a huge explosion that left everyone in the crowds completely speechless. "My ice, he absolutely f*cked it!" Wulfric remarked.

On the ground was Abomasnow…

In his regular form…

Defeated…

"Abomasnow is unable to battle, Greninja wins!" The ref exclaimed. "Which means the win goes to Ash the challenger!"

Wulfric was stunned, but quietly returned his giant snow monster to his pokeball.

"Alright!" Ash exclaimed as he ran into the ice field and embraced Greninja who returned to his normal form. Then Ash high fived the aquatic frog. Ash then turned to the stands and saw more or less 40 people clapping. He moved his eyes to where he last saw his companions, but they were not there.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu tackled Ash to a hug from behind, startling him, but Ash smiled and returned the embrace as well.

"Hey bud, nice to see you again!" Ash said as he petted his electric rodent.

"Great job Ash, that was amazing!" Clemont exclaimed. "To know you had the legend the whole time."

"What do you me-"

"Ash that was the best I have ever seen you, clearly a better battle than last time," Brock told Ash with a smile.

 **Ash POV:**

"Ash that was so awesome, you and Greninja kicked some butt!" Bonnie shouted.

"Nenne!" Dedenne agreed with Bonnie from his pouch.

I thanked them and looked at the last person that was waiting to congratulate me… Serena. She stood there with a smile, one that meant she was proud of me… who am I kidding this was only possible because of her, she deserves something.

I put out my fist for a fistbump.

 **Scroll down again :)**

I mentally curse myself.

She goes to accept the fist bump…

F*ck it!

As her fist is about to touch mine, I unravel my fist and get a grip in her hand and pull her into a hug. I notice Clemont and Brock smile and Bonnie smirk.

I could guess Serena was blushing… Probably because I brought her this close to me, so I whisper in her ear something, "Thanks for bringing me back."

I felt Serena tense up and then relax and then I heard a shy, "y-you're welcome." I could tell she was probably not comfortable so I parted the hug and smiled at her. Her face was all red, but I could see happiness in her look so I was happy with that.

"That really was an amazing battle Ash, now that you have shown to me your true power, I can give this to you with confidence," I hear a new voice and notice it belonged to Wulfric who is walking up to me with a pillow in his hands. "For proof of your victory here in the Snowbelle gym, I present to you the _Iceberg Badge_! Go ahead and take it."

I look at the hexagonal badge presented to me and pick it up, "Thanks Wulfric." I then look at my friends and exclaim while jumping. "ALRIGHT! I GOT THE ICEBERG BADGE!"

"Pi pikachu!"

"NINJA!"

I then pull out my badge case and put the last badge I needed on there. As soon as I close it, the badges glisten to the light. Wulfric then speaks up to me, "So, I am guessing you are going for the Kalos League right?"

"You bet!" I exclaim as I shake hands with Wulfric for a thank you note on a fun and great battle.

 **Later that night normal POV:**

Serena walks up to the door of the pokemon center and overhears what Ash is saying.

"Alright guys, next up is the Kalos League, are you guys ready?!"

"Pika!"

"Tile!"

"Gruaw!"

"Ninja!"

"Vern!"

"Goodra!"

Ash smiled at his team and jumped with a fist out to the sky, "Then let's WIN!"

And with that, Ash's pokemon shared one more battle cry and Ash knew…

 _All of his pokemon are ready to take on the Kalos League._

 **A/N: Woooooooooooweeeeeeee…**

 **What a chapter xD**

 **You guys have high hopes for the Kalos league now that the chapters look insane? Specially the battles?**

 **Well I am ready!**

 **Tell me how you liked this battle and tell me what was your favorite part. Yes, I did make Sceptile have the Infernape buff, but it is a rare occasion that happened here, keep that in mind.**

 **I hope you enjoyed!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **ArmorshippingFan: Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for leaving a review too, it means a lot!**

 **Guest 1: Thanks! I appreciate your support! Thanks for reviewing!**

 **Stardust902: I am glad that you are enjoying it their far. About the changing point of view, I have arrived away from it at this point, but I need you to know that I have put some of it in the upcoming chapters (I have already written up to chapter 40 fyi, so you may run into it at times). Anyways, I am glad that you pointed that out to me and I will keep up the great work! Thanks for reviewing!**

 **Guest 2: Glad you enjoyed dude! Thanks for reviewing!**

 **Also, one last thing guys:**

 **Thank you so much for almost 20k views, that is insane! Also, thank you for getting me to 100 reviews! First time I ever did that, so I feel like I hit a milestone as well! We are almost at 100 follows and favorites too, thanks so much guys!**


	23. Chapter 23

**Pokemon Center at Snowbelle City:**

Ash, Serena, Clemont, Bonnie and Brock all had their backpacks ready to go and they were in front of the door of the Pokemon Center.

"Ready?" Brock asked with glee as he went up to the door to open it. The others nodded as they were going to follow him out the door.

Suddenly, something caught Ash's eye causing everyone to look back at what Ash was focusing on. Ash's eyes were glued to the television set on the wall of the Pokemon Center. It announced the Kalos League. A feminine voice then narrated over a picture of a hexagonal stadium that had a circle in the middle that lead to a dark abyss which had two paths leading to it and what looked like a large trainer box. There was three stories of seats that looked like they could harbor around a quarter million people and it looked like there was a village around the stadium where Ash assumed the participants and fans stayed. "The Kalos League will be starting real soon! After the trainers attempt to defeat the victory road, we will be left with the perfect amount of trainers to start the tournament!" The feminine voice called out.

"The League stadium looks amazing," Ash said turning to Clemont who had a bright smile looking at the television. Ash then looked at Pikachu, "Pikachu are you ready to win it?"

"Pika Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted while pumping a small yellow fist and gathering electricity on his cheeks thus making Ash smile.

Clemont scratched the back of his head sheepishly and pointed to the picture, "The actual design of the stadium was designed by me." Brock, Serena, Bonnie, Ash and Pikachu looked at Clemont with a surprised look. Clemont then turned to Ash and continued explaining, "I developed the programing software for the random battlefields and I also made it so that the scoreboard had a nice design while displaying the pokemon." Clemont and then smiled, "And the fact that I also made the idea of making it hexagonal is so that everyone can have a great view of the battle."

Brock then put a hand on his chin as he thought about something. Then, the television roared again, "The Kalos League will begin with the Victory Road challenge which was recently constructed in Lumiose City…" A cave is shown that depicts a mountain that leads up to the stadium and village that houses the actual Lumiose Conference. "The Victory Road will begin at Prism Tower in a few days! Hope to see challengers there!"

With that, the television screen went black as Ash had shining eyes. Ash then turned to everyone, "I am ready for the league! Who is ready to cheer us on?!"

"Pika!"

"I am!" Everyone else shouted while putting a fist in the air.

"Then let's go!" Ash shouted being the first one out the door and into the snowy weather of Snowbelle City. Ash the picked up the pace and with Pikachu on his shoulders, he began to run towards the route that leads back to Lumiose.

"WAIT FOR ME!" Serena exclaimed with a pink tint in her cheeks as she ran after her crush. Brock and Bonnie followed behind also running to catch up with the raven haired teenager.

"Wait! CAN WE NOT RUN?!" Clemont asked as he ran, or what he thought was running, behind the group lagging behind completely.

 **A/N: Ok so, this chapter will be mysterious as hell, but I need you guys to know this is not a filler. What happens here will play a huge factor in the league.**

 **Now, one character here has a happy and always smiling counterpart, but he will be OOC for now, in fact do not expect this guy to go in character until further into the story.**

 **Oh yea, this chapter contains two gym battles of two different people by the way, I prefered to do this than a filler with the normal gang.**

 **Hope you guys enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 23- I won't smile until I can see her safe again!

 **Tower of Mastery (Shalour City):**

The battlefield was populated with two trainers in their trainer boxes. Both trainers held serious faces as they stood ready to battle. The referee was a bald man that had white robes on. One could call him a "master of mega evolution" since he is known to be the keeper of the scroll at the Tower of Mastery. The Tower of Mastery was known as a great location for people that are fascinated with the origins and history of mega evolution. Of course, the tower also housed the Shalour City Gym which is ran by the gym leader Korrina. This was what was about to go down in the gym too.

"So you think you can beat me and get the rumble badge?" A blonde girl with a well built body taunted. She had roller skating gear and even some roller skates on her shoes. She had pale skin and blue eyes and she stood tall with arms crossed in her trainer box. She then shifted her gaze at her opponent. "Ashura, right? I accept your challenge!"

The raven haired man we know as Ashura stood in his battle box with a serious expression on his face, "Don't be too stubborn, Korrina, I know you are a gym leader, but you clearly underestimate my power."

"Do you question my authority as gym leader?" Korrina asked back with a sour expression. Korrina then put on a fighting pose by lifting her leg up in a kick. "I will not be a pushover Ashura, try to defeat me!" Korrina then turned to the man acting as referee. "Grandpa, get this show on the road!"

The man looked at the two trainers and carefully eyed Ashura, something about the way he acted did not sound good to him. Ashura then turned to the referee noticing his alarmed expression, "Gurkinn, my friend, let me show you what I can really do with one of my strongest pokemon."

The man we now know is Gurkinn nodded and raised his hand, "This will be a three on three pokemon battle! This match will be over when three pokemon on either side are unable to continue. Additionally, only the challenger is allowed to perform substitutions." Gurkinn then turned to the trainers, "Do all trainers agree?" Ashura and Korrina nodded. "Trainers, choose your first pokemon!"

"I will go first!" Korrina exclaimed as she put on a battle pose with her hands out. She then took out a pokeball and threw it at the field. "Go Mienshao!" The pokeball opened and from it came a bright flashing light that turned into a Mienshao. The Mienshao then made a battle cry as he waved his whip like arms around.

Ashura stood there with arms crossed, "I guess this pokemon will do." Ashura then grabbed the pokeball with all his might and threw it onto the field. "GO Aegislash!" From the pokeball, the light turned into a shield and blade like pokemon that floated ready for battle in attack mode, not defense mode as people would expect. The pokemon also stood their silently which was very peculiar as it would have been expected to make a battle cry. Gurkinn carefully eyed the Aegislash with a suspicious expression on his face.

Gurkinn then turned to Ashura, "Challenger makes the first move!"

Ashura looked at Aegislash and then Mienshao and already figured out a plan to defeat the bipedal fighting type.

Gurkinn then put his hand down, "BATTLE BEGIN!"

 **Battle music start! Ashura (Aegislash) vs Korrina (Mienshao):**

"So, you are looking for the type advantage? My pokemon have more than just fighting type moves," Korrina smiled as she taunted Ashura.

Ashura smirked, "Stubborn little girl aren't you? It is a shame that you barely know any fighting type moves because this particular Aegislash is actually _weak_ to fighting." Gurkinn instantly went wide eyed at what Ashura said. Without any time, Ashura called out his first move after he pumped his fist, " _Sludge bomb_!" Aegislash then shot a purple ball at Mienshao. Unable to comprehend what was going on, Korrina was completely immobilized as she watched Mienshao take the entire hit in a large explosion. When the smoke cleared, Mienshao was standing with purple electricity going around his body and what looked like bubbles coming from the mouth.

"Poison no!" Korrina exclaimed in shock as she watched how Mienshao was clearly poisoned. Gurkinn obviously was coming up with explanations for this as he looked over at the Aegislash. 'How does Aegislash know that move… unless… Could this even be an Aegislash?' Gurkinn thought as he watched Korrina give out her counter attack. Korrina then put her fist out and exclaimed, "Mienshao use focus blast!"

"Mien… SHAO!" Mienshao shouted as he made a yellow orb between his hands. After that, Mienshao threw the orb straight at Aegislash expecting the move to cause damage. The yellow orb pierced the sky and before it hit, Ashura made sure this move caused no damage at all.

"Aegislash dodge it by using night slash on the orb and hit it down, then use your speed and hit Mienshao with a strong night slash," Ashura commanded with arms crossed and a bored expression. The Aegislash made his blade glow purple and then he moved at a fast speed towards the focus blast. Gurkinn's eyes widened, 'NO, Aegislash would never be this fast'. Aegislash then did his orders with ease. He jumped over the focus blast by hitting the sphere to the ground and with great speed and agility, Aegislash went into the sky with a great amount of speed that made Korrina look at the Aegislash in complete awe. Aegislash then slammed the purple blade into the Mienshao and it went flying past Korrina at an unbelievable speed.

"Mienshao NO!" Korrina exclaimed as the bipedal purple fighting type slammed across the wall in a small cloud of smoke.

"Mienshao…" The pokemon groaned as he stood back up. Suddenly purple electricity marks appeared on the pokemon and with that he fell to the ground unconscious due to poisoning.

Gurkinn looked at Mienshao and knew he had to make the call, "Mienshao is unable to battle, Zor- I mean, Aegislash wins!" Ashura looked at Gurkinn with a smirk knowing that the elder master of mega evolution figured out his little strategy. Korrina though, she recalled Mienshao with a completely confused face.

Korrina then turned to Ashura and asked, "Sludge bomb? How?"

Ashura just looked down, "It is something that you have to figure out." Ashura then shifted his gaze at Korrina and shrugged his shoulders, "Do you want to continue?"

Korrina did not speak a word as she put a pokeball in front of her and threw it. The pokemon that came out of the pokeball was a Machoke, "MACHO!" he cried in pride.

Ashura smiled, "Ah, a Machoke, native to my home region."

"This time, we won't lose! Use dynamic punch!" Korrina exclaimed as she put her hands out. Machoke charged the Aegislash with a great amount of power and then made his fist glow white as he was ready to slam it into the shield like pokemon.

Ashura put his hand out and exclaimed, "Counter it with night slash!" Aegislash made his blade glow purple and then the two moves collided with sparks flying and with that night slash overpowered and made Machoke fall back in complete pain. Ashura then made his next command, "Now use _flamethrower_!" Gurkinn looked at Aegislash with a large amount of confirmation over his theory. The Aegislash charged up a jet of flames and blast it towards the Machoke that was in front of Korrina in pain.

"Flamethrower?!" Korrina gasped as she recoiled and looked at the attack come at her pokemon. Korrina then put her arm out palm down and shouted, "stone edge break through the attack!"

"Ma...CHOKE!" Machoke shouted as he pounded the ground made a barrage of blue rocks appear from the ground with great power. The stone edge then pierced the flamethrower due to the material of the attack and the stone edge then continued onto the exposed Aegislash.

"Jump on that stone edge!" Ashura exclaimed while pumping his fist with one hand. Aegislash then made himself go airborne and with great ability, but suspicious movement since it looked like a pokemon that floats was being affected by gravity, Aegislash jumped on the stone edge and delivered a nasty position for Machoke. "Finish it off with night slash!" Aegislash swiftly made the blade become purple and with that slammed it into the chest of Machoke. Machoke fell back in pain in front of Korrina.

"Machoke get up!" Korrina exclaimed with hope.

"Machoke…" Machoke got to his knees. "Macho…" Machoke fell unconscious on the floor of the battlefield.

"Machoke NO!" Korrina recoiled seeing her pokemon be defeated so easily.

Gurkinn instantly also made the call, "Machoke is unable to battle, Aegislash wins!" Korrina once again silently recalls her defeated fighting type.

Ashura just looked at Korrina and claimed, "Korrina, you have so much to learn in being a pokemon battler. So much to learn." Korrina then looked at her challenger that was actually _teaching_ her a lesson. "I am doing this to clean up a mess that I made some time ago… I don't know if I will be forgiven, but I will try my best." Ashura then smiled at he young gym leader. "Give me your strongest and show me what you can do!" Gurkinn looked at Ashura with interest. There was an aura of a strong person that had a nice past, until something clouded it with pain and agony.

Korrina looked at Ashura with awe and narrowed her eyes. Korrina then gripped a pokeball from her belt and looked at it with great determination. Looking back at Ashura she smirked, "LUCARIO LET'S GO!"

The pokeball soared in the sky and from it came a pokemon that was bipedal with a fighting like stature. The pokemon also had a glove like feature with a Lucarionite to Ashura's surprise. "RIO! LUCA!" The Lucario shouted in a battle cry.

"Ahhh, a Lucario, it looks powerful, in fact it reminds me of a good friend," Ashura replied with a smile. "Aegislash are you ready?"

Aegislash to everyone's surprise turned to Ashura and put his blade in the air while giving out a small cry, "Zora!" Gurkinn's eyes went wide when he heard the cry obviously knowing that the Aegislash was not even an Aegislash at all, but a Zoroark.

"You can cut the disguise Zoroark," Ashura said. "I want this battle to actually involve your true façade." The Aegislash then began to glow purple out of nowhere. Slowly, materializing into another shape, the Aegislash became its true identity, a werewolf like bipedal pokemon with black fur. The pokemon also had some blood red claws and a long hairstyle with a blue sphere near the bottom along with red hair at the ends. The Zoroark eyed his opponent as his hair waved as aura projected as wind from Lucario's strong stance.

Korrina looked surprised as she saw the transformation. She knew she needed to go all out so she went for her keystone. "Lucario! Mega evolve!" Lucario then growled as he turned white and began to grow. The spikes he had on his body became larger and the the ends of his limbs became red. The four prongs Lucario had behind his head also grew substantially and developed some red coloring as well. Notably, Lucario's eyes became red too.

At the sight of the mega evolution, Ashura could not help but smirk at the confrontation.

"Power up punch!" Korrina exclaimed as she made a fighting pose.

"Luca…" Lucario leaped into the air with ease and made his fist glow a fire like coloration. Lucario waved his fist around as he soared to make himself stronger. Ashura gave no call as Lucario slammed his fit from the air into Zorork. Ashura smiled as he saw that Zoroark stumbled back a bit.

"We are not done, aura sphere!"

Ashura saw Lucario formed a blue sphere of energy in between his hands and put his hand out, "Counter it quick, sludge bomb!" Zoroark made his hands form a purple sphere and with that he launched it at the incoming blue sphere of energy. The gap closed between the two orbs and there was an explosion in the middle of the battle field. Ashura then made his counter attack, "Zoroark get up close and use night slash!"

Korinna then put her fist out, "bone rush, quick!" Both pokemon made their blades, Zoroark making purple ones with his hands while Lucario made two bones which he was using as kunais. The gap closed between the pokemon and they stood at a duel between night slash and bone rush. Lucario put on a more defensive approach while Zoroark countered all of the hits that came his way. Both pokemon then backflipped back to their trainers with great power. "Aura sphere!" Korrina shouted as she threw her hand out.

"Luca… RIO!" Lucario charged the aura sphere and and then made it go at an amazing speed at Zoroark. Zoroark had no time to dodge and got consumed in the sphere. The sphere then sent the Zoroark to the sky with great power and exploded.

Ashura narrowed his eyes as Zoroark fell to the ground and pumped his fist, "Flamethrower let's go!"

"Zora!" Zoroark shouted as he launched the barrage of flames from his mouth at the fighting-steel pokemon.

Knowing this would be fatal, Korrina put on another martial arts pose and shouted, "Bone rush quick!" Lucario summoned his two bones in each hand and put it in front of him as the attack approached. Then, Lucario put the bones in front of him as the flamethrower collided completely slicing the flames harmlessly. From that, Zoroark stopped the jet of flames as he reached the ground and landed with both legs and one arm. Gurkinn instantly smiled watching the battle between the two. "Bone rush again!"

"Night slash!" Ashura exclaimed as he put his fist out. The pokemon again met in the middle, but this time it was a stalemate. Night slash thought broke through and Lucario back flipped with his bones in a defensive way as Zoroark went after him again. Zoroark again collided his purpled blade with the bone, but as he went to get a real strike with his other arm, Lucario jumped out of the way. The collisions caused sparks that ignited the field. Zoroark then retreated to be in front of his trainer smirking wildly.

Both trainers then with determined faces shouted their next attack, "FLAMETHROWER!/METAL SOUND!"

"Luca… RIO!" Lucario clapped his hands together making a group of terrible sounding sound waves.

"ZORA!" Zoroark launched a beam of flames towards Lucario.

The two beams were in a stalemate until eventually the flamethrower was pushed back and slammed into Zoroark. Korrina then looked at her Lucario and said, "Let's finish this! Aura sphere!" Lucario launched his beam, but Ashura already had Zoroark ready for the final attack.

"Zoroark use NIGHT DAZE!" Ashura exclaimed as he threw a punch into the ground. Zoroark did the same while covered in a dark aura. Suddenly, a huge dark shock wave came out in all 360 degrees destroying the aura sphere and consuming Lucario completely. Lucario got pushed back into a wall and made a huge dent on it as he reverted back to his original form and slid down unconscious.

"Lucario is unable to battle, Zoroark wins, which means the win goes to Ashura!" Gurkinn exclaims. He is proud of his grand daughter despite the upset of the lost. Gurkinn knew from the way Ashura battled that the man was probably even stronger than even a champion.

Korrina praised Lucario as she recalled him. At the same time Ashura praised his Zoroark for the hard battling and recalled him too.

"That was a really good battle, I did not expect you to be that strong," Korrina explained as she walked up to Ashura.

"Yea, I was not expecting you to be that good either, you truly are a good gym leader Korrina," Ashura genuinely said.

Korrina then pulled a badge out of her pocket and presented it to Ashura, "This is the rumble badge. Go on and take it as proof of victory at the Shalour Gym!" Ashura accepted the badge and put it on his case. All eight badges that are in the case glistened at the light. "You have eight," Korrina started. "That means…"

"Kalos league?" Ashura smirked. "I don't need to do it, but I feel like I have to… I need to battle someone there, he is very strong and I have to make amends with him."

Korrina nodded at Ashura's response in understanding.

'Ash, I need to make things right with you,' Ashura thought to himself.

 **Anistar City Gym:**

A raging battle was going on inside of the sundial. The gym was lit in vibrant colors as there was four pokemon on the field that had a clock under it. Two of the pokemon belonged to the gym leader who was Olympia. She had two Meowstic, one female and one male, and they were battling against two pokemon that even Olympia did not recognize. These pokemon were battling with their tan skinned trainer who had green hair, orange sneakers, yellow shorts and a black shirt that had a little curve at the top… Notably, the trainer had a bracelet with an orange crystal on it. One of the pokemon was a large bipedal tiger that had a belt that had fire power while the other resembled a Raichu, but it was floating in its tail. The to Meowstic managed to hit the two pokemon with dark pulse and both of them fell in front of their trainer barely able to battle.

The trainer grew stressed watching his pokemon being defeated, "Incineroar! Raichu! Come on, stand up!"

"Roar…" The tiger that the trainer referred to as Incineroar groaned as he got to his knees in pain.

"Rai…" Raichu also groaned in pain as he could barely get himself back in the air to surf on his tail again.

The trainer saw the state of his pokemon and clenched his fist while gritting his teeth. Through the adrenaline he had, he was trembling. He was forcing himself to win at all costs, there was no way that anyone would even stand in his way. The trainer then looked at his pokemon and said, "Get up please, if not for me… Then for _Lillie_!"

Like if magic happened, both the Raichu and the Incineroar got back up and put on a battle stance. They were still exhausted, but they wanted to win at all costs. At the trainer's statement Olympia found herself in a vision as her eye glew a light blue color. After a couple seconds, she found herself in reality and looked at the trainer, "Hau…" she said while looking at the trainer that was called Hau. "You used to smile…"

Hau looked at Olympia and kept his fists clenched. Suddenly he exclaimed, "And I won't! _I won't smile until I can see her safe again!_ " Hau then pumped his fist and looked at Raichu, "Raichu use psyshock on the male!"

"Rai!" Raichu shouted as he got on his tail and started flying up. "Rai… CHUUUUU!" Raichu shouted while giving out a spur of pink beams out. The pink beams seeked the mostly blue Meowstic and caused an explosion.

"Meowstic, are you ok?" Olympia asked the male cat.

"Meoowww!" The feline shouted as he got back up from the psyshock still recovering.

Suddenly, Olympia smirked and when Hau looked up, he knew why. A future sight that Olympia had used some time ago had activated and was about to pelt on Incineroar and Raichu. Hau looked around fast and when he found the solution, Hau put his arm out and commanded, "Incineroar get on top of Raichu and cover him!"

"ROAR!" Olympia watched in shock as the Incineroar gave out a battle cry and put himself on top of the mouse pokemon. The future sight then hit the back of the tiger-like pokemon and caused a large explosion. When the smoke cleared, Olympia had expected the two pokemon to be unable to battle, but to her surprise Incineroar got back up from his position and looked at the Meowstic with a determined face.

"But how?" Olympia asked completely awestruck.

Hau just looked seriously at Incineroar and said, "Incineroar is a dark type, he is completely immune to any psychic type attacks!" Hau the. Put his fist out. "Raichu get the female with thunderbolt! Incineroar use darkest Lariat on the male!"

Raichu made himself go into the air with an electric aura that crackled. The Raichu then launched the electric beam at the mostly white feline. The electric beam pierced the air and caused the Meowstic to get hit in an explosion. Incineroar also made himself get enveloped in an aura, but a dark one this time. The dark aura caused Incineroar to charge the male Meowstic. Incineroar then crashed into the male Meowstic completely making it fall in pain in front of Olympia.

Olympia raised her hand as the two Meowstic struggled to get up and commanded, "Use helping hand and dark pulse!" One of the Meowstic, the male one, then gave the other a gold aura while the female charged up a dark spiral beam in her hands. After charging it up, the super powered beam was expelled with great power.

"Quick, use thunderbolt!" Hau exclaimed as he pointed at the pokemon he was battling.

"Rai… CHUUUUUU!" Raichu shot his beam of electricity which streaked the sky and went to counter the dark pulse directly. The gap closed between the two beams as the pokemon struggled to keep the attacks viable. The attacks kept going and eventually the dark pulse began to overpower and creep up on Raichu.

"Raichu, dodge and surf your way out of danger!" Hau exclaimed. Raichu stopped his attack, but before the dark pulse hit, Raichu went off the ground and started surfing over the dark beam… Only for the dark pulse to curve upwards and follow Raichu thanks to keen eye. Hau then got an idea, "Nose dive towards the Meowstic!" Raichu then did as he was told and began to dive until at the last second. "NOW!" Hau shouted as he pumped his fist. Raichu got back on his tail and leveled off, but the dark pulse kept going and hit the Meowstic that were under it. Both felines fell back in pain.

"How clever," Olympia said in an unamused tone as she saw her pokemon get up from the attack barely standing. Olympia then out her hand out, "Use psyshock!"

"Meooooowwww!" Both felines shouted as they charged up their attack and perked up their ears. Suddenly, they shot the pink beams towards the Raichu recklessly which is what Hau wanted the whole time.

"Incineroar take the hit!"

"ROAR!" Incineroar shouted as he got in front of Raichu and took the psyshock dead on. The smoke cleared and Incineroar was still there standing with no damage taken due to his fire type.

"Let's finish this!" Hau called out as he began to make movement with his arms. Incineroar then got enveloped in an aura that was passed from Hau. Then Hau shouted, "Z MOVE! Malicious Moonslaught!"

"ROAR!" Incineroar shouted in a deafening battlecry and then jumped on top of the Meowstic that were watching in awe with Olympia. Incineroar then fell on both felines in a wrestling like manner that caused an explosion in the middle of the battlefield.

When the smoke cleared and Incineroar got out of the way, it was evident that the Meowstic were unconscious and completely defeated.

"Both Meowstic are unable to battle, which means the winner is Hau!" the referee announced. Hau felt a small smile curve up to his lips, but then frowned as he praised and recalled his pokemon because he remembered the real purpose of his travel.

"Meowstic you battled bravely now take a good rest," Olympia said as she recalled her pokemon into red energy and then they got sucked into their pokeballs.

 **A little later:**

Hau was in the pokemon center at a video phone and he dialed up a number. The screen showed static until suddenly a female voice broke the static as the monitor began to portray a green haired, light tanned with green eyed teenaged girl, "Hello? Hau?"

Hau looked and the girl and with a soft tone replied, "Mallow, I just wanted to know how my sister was doing…"

Mallow sighed and looked at Hau with a sad face, "Nothing has changed, Lillie is still on life support… The surgery price has not changed either…" Mallow then decided to look at Hau and ask, "Hau, how did it go in the gym battle?"

Hau pulled out his badge case and showed Mallow all eight badges collected, "I got them all… Now I need to..." Hau clenched his fists as he said the next part, "Get past the round of top 32 in the Kalos League so I can get the prize money that comes with passing onto the last phase… I did my research now that they updated the information of the Kalos League and the prize money is just enough to get me back to Alola and get the surgery done... I can't lose, so much is at stake…"

Mallow looked at Hau with a worried expression on her face. She had known Hau for so long now and through the time they spent together she developed feelings for the Hau she once knew: an optimistic one, a person that smiled all the time and was so relaxed even when there was trouble. She knew that person still existed, but the only way he would come back is if Lillie gets the surgery to save her done. Mallow then spoke up, "Hau, you used to be so happy… Remember when you and Kiawe had that battle in which Incineroar, then a Litten, actually used Infernal Overdrive on his first try?"

Hau remembered the memory and tried to smile, but his muscles just would not move. His temporalis was just never stimulated to smile like it used to. Still, Hau replied to Mallow, "I know, I remember that." Hau then looked down and clenched his fists again. "Mallow, what if I don't win? what if I don't find a way to save Lillie?"

Mallow looked at Hau sadly, "Hau you will do it… Your sister believes in you, your friends believe in you… Your pokemon all are with you, and… _I-I believe in you_." Hau took in everything that was said and sighed.

"Look Mallow, I am sorry for waking you up this late, I know you are in Hoenn time over there in Alola… I was just worried that's all, thanks for being there for me," Hau replied genuinely.

Mallow had sparkling eyes at seeing Hau thank her like that, Mallow then gave a smile, "It doesn't matter when you wake me up, I will be here for you always!"

Hau then looked at Mallow for the last time and said, "Thanks again, good night…"

"Good night Hau… Take care."

With that, the video call ended and Hau slumped against the wall and took a deep breath. " _Almost there_ ," Hau whispered to himself.

 **That night in route to Lumiose:**

The gang had set up two tents, one for the boys and one for the girls. With that, Brock and Clemont were cleaning up the dishes after they had finished dinner some time ago. Serena went to put Bonnie to sleep and after succeeding, she returned to see the boys watching certain raven haired trainer training.

"Pikachu, use thunderbolt!"

"Pika… CHUUUUU!" Pikachu exclaimed as he ripped a lot of electricity through a stream that was next to the campsite. Ash had decided to jump in the stream as well as he trained with two of his pokemon.

Just as the thunderbolt was about to hit a certain pseudolegendary dragon Ash put his fist out, "Goodra counter it with your thunder!"

"Gooo… DRA!" Goodra shouted as he shot an electric beam at the thunderbolt. The electric beams interacted with each other and then dispersed into thin air.

Ash then pointed at the sky, "Goodra use rain dance!" Goodra shot his battle cry at the sky thus summoning clouds that slowly began to pour down rain which dampened Ash.

"Wow, Ash is getting fired up," Brock replied as he looked at the battle.

Clemont the smirked, "After I finish the dishes I am going to help train him!"

Brock's face then lit up, "me too, haha!"

Serena though, she had an agitated look on her face as she ran up to the boys and seeing as the rain was damping Ash. With a towel in hand, Serena threw it at Ash while exclaiming, "Ash you are going to catch a cold! Dry yourself!"

Ash's focus stopped being in the battle as he turned to catch the towel in time and hear Serena's advice. Brock of course, he looked at Serena and chuckled at how the performer took care of the trainer. Brock then stepped in and said, "Serena, relax, that is just a myth, take it from a pokemon Doctor."

Serena then turned to Brock and simply said, "You sure? My mother always told me that you would."

Brock just chuckled, "It is just a myth, you need to be exposed to an actual infectious agent to even catch a cold… Just because his hair is wet does not mean he got exposed."

Clemont chuckled as he heard the pokemon Doctor begin to sound smart. Clemont actually agreed with Brock stating that it seems logical.

Ash just stood there confused and turned to the worried Serena and said, "Don't worry Serena, if they say that I won't catch it, then I probably won't."

"But Ash," Serena tried to interject.

"Come on Serena, relax," Ash started. Suddenly, feeling his nose itch Ash got the urge to:

"AAAAAACHOOOOO!"

 **A/N: Ok, so that last part was set up for next chapter. Some of the stuff will be different, so chill it will be amusing like the anime. The reason why I am making a fun chapter is because… well… I don't think there has been a fun chapter in a while and when the league starts there might not be so many.**

 **Also, on the new participants we know for the league… Get prepared for the role they will play because it will make things interesting!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **NinjaFang1331: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it this far! Thanks for leaving a review telling me that it was good, I appreciate it!**

 **ArmorshippingFan: It is going to happen soon, just wait, I have already planned it out, and don't worry, it will not take as long as it was on** _ **The Fallen Trainer**_ **. Maybe it will take just as many chapters, but it will not be towards the end of the story. Also, thanks for the review!**

 **Bonnie759: Thanks! Glad you enjoyed the Angel with a Shotgun part of the battle, in fact, this is not the last of songs in battles: Expect them in big battles towards the end when it gets climactic too. I hope you enjoyed, thanks for reviewing!**

 **Seth: I hear you loud and clear brother! I saws both of your reviews, don't worry! Also, the time where Greninja was failing in the anime was the time that he was Frogadier in this fic. Once Frogadier evolved into Greninja here, the Ash-Greninja transformation was mastered, so don't worry about the power of Ash-Greninja… Keep in mind that the form will not be seen for a good amount of chapters for now, so even though Greninja is powerful, he is not always the star of the show, so don't hate me. As for Sceptile, I am thinking of making a future development arc for him, but for now, expect his Overgrow to be like Infernape's in the anime, so he can be very overpowered! Thanks for reviewing!**

 **HybridAshGreninja: One of my favorites too! Thanks for leaving a review, hope you enjoyed!**

 **Guest 1: I will keep up the good work! Thanks for enjoying and reviewing!**


	24. Chapter 24

**Lysandre Labs:**

"So, Lysandre," A woman with red hair, pale skin, glasses with a red tint and a black with red attire said to the man that had a red lion mane like hair. The room was nice and it was very comfortable for the two adults who sat in their own leather chairs. Lysandre was conversing with a colleague at that time and as he did that, he was petting his Pyroar. "What do you think we ought to do about that trainer?"

Lysandre sighed and spoke up to the woman, "Malva, to be honest… He is strong, he has proven himself to be a threat to my plans…" Lysandre trailed off. Then spoke up again, "I will just have to attack him when the time is right."

Suddenly, a door slammed open and two grunts piled into the room with an alarmed expression getting both the attention of Malva and Lysandre who turned to the grunts who obviously did have bad news. One of the grunts then spoke up, "Our Zapdos was caught!"

Lysandre at hearing that got out of his chair with extreme alarm and through gritted teeth shouted, "WHAT?! AFTER WE GOT THEM BACK?!"

 **Earlier at an undisclosed location:**

Hunter was walking through the route to Lumiose attempting to catch another pokemon. He was next to a bipedal fire chicken and a small fox like pokemon. He turned to the chicken and said, "Blaziken, keep your guard high." Hunter then turned to Eevee and said, "Eevee, make sure you stay on guard."

Suddenly, he was met with a cry for help: "DOS! Artic! Moltres!"

"What was that?" Hunter asked himself as he saw his pokemon tense up.

"Blaziken!" Blaziken said as he pointed in the direction of the trouble.

"Blaziken, Eevee, let's go!" Hunter shouted as he ran through the shrubs and bushes and what he saw next completely left his mouth hanging open. "No… f*cking… way!" Hunter's expression then grew to worried. "EEVEE, BLAZIKEN QUICK!"

"Eevee!" Eevee shouted as he charged up a shadow ball in his mouth. Blaziken then jumped into the sky setting his leg in fire and coming down towards the target.

 **A/N: I am going to leave it at that. There is a cliff hanger now and that story might not finish until next chapter so keep that in mind. Until the league I may do these things.**

 **I want to say that you guys are ready to make fan art of what happens next!**

 **No… (someone whispers in my ear)**

 **Wait there already is fan art of this?**

 **(Whispers in my ear)**

 **Wait, but didn't Ash get a picture?**

 **OK, Now I know what to write!**

 **Just a quick tip, this chapter is based on Noivern and well… Serena because it would be fun to do an entire chapter on her!**

 **Enjoy ;)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 24- Battling at a huge amounts of volume to not wake up Ash! Serena gets confessed to?!

 **That morning at the campsite near the stream:**

The gang was enjoying breakfast under the beautiful morning. The sun was out, the sky was clear because Goodra was in his pokeball. The fletchling chirped and the breeze was nice and _Serena_ … **(See what I did there?)**. Brock and Clemont had prepared some nice breakfast for the group and they were all digging in, until of course Bonnie noticed something was missing… In fact something at the table that was very important was there.

"Uhhhh, Ash sure is taking his time today," Bonnie remarked as she looked at the table. Pikachu also noticed and cocked his head in confusion.

"Peculiar, Ash is always at the table to eat, in fact, he is the first," Brock said confused.

"I think he was training all night if I remember correctly," Clemont remarked as he adjusted his glasses.

Serena did not look dazed at all, she probably thought that Ash to wake up, so she told Bonnie, "Let's go wake him up Bonnie!"

"Ok!" Bonnie said as she and serena hopped out of their chairs to go to the blue tent that Ash was sleeping in. As the duo approached the tent, Ash opened the tent door that caught the attention of the whole gang who now looked at him. Bonnie spoke up first, "Oh Ash, breakfast is ready!"

Ash… How can anyone put it… he did not look good. His face was flushed red and he looked fatigued. As he opened the tent, he barely sounded like he even listened to Bonnie. He just spoke up confused, "It's ready? Ok thanks."

Serena then walked up behind Bonnie to greet her crush, "Hey, go wash up, hungry?" Serena then noticed Ash start to walk her way making her recoil a little. "Huh?" Everyone now had their attention on Ash and Serena as the raven haired trainer randomly approached the honey blonde one.

"What the?" Bonnie muttered to herself as she saw Ash walk past her like a zombie.

Suddenly, Ash fell on Serena's arms at a suggestive pose with a small gasp from Ash leaning against Serena's belly grabbing both of her arms. Serena instantly blushed as she saw her crush do that to her. Ash then looked up and said, "Serena, I love…"

Serena's face instantly turned very red, more than a tomato as she asked, "What do you love?"

Ash then looked at Serena and grabbed her hair while straining to speak, but he said, "YOU!"

Serena instantly went wide eyed and more red than ever and then she asked, "You actually love me?"

Ash replied with all the power he had the next part: "I love how you were right about me catching a cold!" Ash then slid down Serena's clothes and collapsed to the ground…

Serena looked around and noticed everyone red as in… "What just happened?" Clemont asked.

Serena then looked at Ash and instantly put her hands around her mouth as she saw Ash's state, "Oh no!"

"PIKAPI!"

"ASH!" Everyone shouted in unison as they ran to the raven haired trainer to see what was going on with him.

 **Instant replay in everyone's POV:**

 **Bonnie POV:**

"What the," I mutter as Ash walks by me. He looks more dead than a corpse. But I was more worried as I saw what he was walking to Serena.

I instantly shrieked internally as I saw Ash collapse on Serena's arms, but when Ash spoke up I almost died, "Serena, I love," he started.

OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG… IT'S HAPPENING!

"What do you love?" Serena asked at Ash. As I watched Serena's face change color, I had to reach into the pocket of my bag and get Dedenne to watch.

"Nenne?" he asked me.

"Watch!" I whispered loudly to him.

"YOU!" Ash exclaims and I instantly pumped my fist into the air with amazing triomphe. YES! It happened! It was probably supposed to the the other way around. Ash then collapses and says, "Yes, I love how you were right about me catching a cold."

It sounded like a million shards of glass broke inside of me as my eye twitched. I then face palmed and said internally, "F*ck you Ash… Serena better do that though, not me…"

 **Pikachu POV:**

"Pikapi?" I ask as I see him walk up to Serena. I was in the table and in my hands I had a piece of pokemon food that I was watching with.

I begin to eat the pokemon food as I see Ash collapse on Serena's arms.

Should I shock Ash?

Nah, this sh*t is getting GOOD!

I then hear Ash say, "I love."

I instantly recoiled and shouted, "PIKA?!" I then lost my balance and fell off the table.

I never got to hear the end of that story.

 **Brock POV:**

Why is Ash walking to Serena like an idiot…. WAIT WHAT THE F*CK?

"Serena, I love…" I hear Ash say.

Ok, no, bro, please, don't tell me you are actually going to get her! I try with a million Nurse Joys and Officer Jennys and Ash could get a girl in his first try? I just stare in awe as I see Serena turn bright red as Ash said that he "loved" her. Of course I recoiled, but I was just as relieved when Ash finally stated, "I love how you were right about me catching a cold…" " **SPLAT"** The sound Ash makes as he collapses to the ground.

I could barely hold my laughter as I witnessed Serena's expression turn from a surprised one to an expression of confusion and worry.

Wait… I said catching a cold due to getting one's hair wet was a myth…

I'm so f*cked…

 **Clemont POV:**

"uhhhhh," I state as I watch Ash fall on Serena in such a weird position. Should I cover Bonnie's eyes? I think it would be appropriate. I look at Bonnie as I am about to walk over and close her eyes, but she seems very excited about it… I don't know why.

"What do you love Ash?" I hear as I turn to the two teenagers in a somewhat embrace.

"YOU!" I hear Ash say. At that very moment I swear I could see Serena look so red she could explode. Haha, reminds me of chemistry…

Ooh, I know.

I gotta think I have to let Bonnie watch this as a science lesson! YES!

Then, I can give her the talk tonight. Ooh and I will sing her my favorite song:

 _Bill Nye the science guy!_

 _Billll Nyeeee the scieence guy_

 _BILL! BILL! BILL! BILL! BILL!_

 _Science Ruuuulleeeess!_

 _Bill Nye the Science Guy!_

I stare up at space with shining eyes thinking about my favorite childhood television show… " **SPLAT"**

"What just happened?!" I ask returning to reality.

"ASH!" Everyone and me shout watching Ash collapse to the ground.

 **Ash POV:**

"Urgh," I groan as I wake up due to the beaming sun coming through the tent. A blazing headache was hitting me and it hurt so bad! Oh man, I feel so hot, did I come down with a cold? I touch my forehead and I feel it burning. Yea, its a fever alright. SERENA WAS RIGHT! Dang it Brock! Whatever, I have to wake up. I walk to the edge of the tent and open it.

Bonnie and Serena who was behind Bonnie were waiting for me. Bonnie said something, but I could not understand due to the head ache I had. I understood something about breakfast so I replied, "It's ready? Ok thanks." Serena then popped up and she also was impossible to understand. I know I have to tell her I was sorry for not listening to her and what not so I start to walk to her.

As I am walking, I notice I am a lot weaker than usually. I am about to reach her when my legs give out and I fall in her arms. I look up at her with all the power I had and said out of my control, "Serena, I love…"

Serena was extremely red from what I noticed and she asked me something which I did not hear so I reply with, "YOU!" wait, I should have put a 'how' before 'you'… I CAN'T THINK STRAIGHT!

Serena then recoils at my answer and I figured something I said must have come out wrong. So, after Serena says something again, I blaster her with the most accurate answer I could, "I love how you were right about me catching a cold." With that I fell to the ground completely exhausted as I barely held a grip on Serena's hand.

 **Serena POV:**

I watch in confusion as Ash walks towards me. Why is he doing this? He does not look good since he is randomly blushing and walking like hr is possessed or something… Why does he walk toward me like that? Ash then gets extremely close to me and I recoil as he falls on my arms. I feel the weight of him touching me with the feeling of his scarf rubbing against my arms and I gasp in shock as heat rises to my cheeks.

I can't believe he is doing this!

"Serena, I love…" My attention is brought down to Ash and my blush intensifies… Hold on, backtrack a little, did he just say _love_?

My heart is palpitating out of my chest now. I can feel it about to shoot out of my rib cage faster than a bullet!

"What do you love?" I ask out of nowhere as my vision start to become pink and sparkly. I could see the start of something big here!

"YOU!" Ash shouts. Instantly, fireworks go off in my heart as I heard that. My blush started to give off steam, it was as if I could heat anything up. I felt so special.

"You really love me?" I ask through my delusional ambient. I swear if he does I am going to be the happiest girl in the-

"I love how you were right about me catching a cold!"

uuuuuuuhhhhhhhh…

" **SPLAT!"**

"Oh no!" I shout as I am jumped back into reality and put my hands over my mouth as I see Ash on the floor in bad shape.

Wait, cold?

"ASH!" The gang and me shout in unison with a worried tone.

 **Normal POV:**

"ASH!" Everyone shouts as Serena turns him to a sitting up position.

One touch to the forehead gave it all away for Serena, "He has a fever!" Everyone recoiled as they decided to come up with a solution to the problem.

"Let's lie him down," Brock spoke up. The group nodded and everyone grabbed Ash and carried him together nacl to the tent he was on. After they snugged him tight, Serena brought out Braixen and Brionne as she went with a bowl to get some water from the stream.

Serena and her two pokemon then came back inside the tent where Pikachu was looking at Ash with worry as Brock, Clemont and Bonnie removed Ash's scarf and put it aside with the rest of his clothing. "I still can't believe he sleeps with that scarf…" Bonnie replied as she put it aside.

"I think he just really likes it," Clemont replied as he used the first aid kit Brock had to find some medicines in a pamphlet. "I found it, we need to get this medicine at a pharmacy located just a mile south of here," Clemont replied as he showed the picture to Brock, who was taking Ash's temperature.

Brock turned to the others and spoke up, "Ash is running a 101 temperature, we need someone to take care of him as Clemont and me get the medicine at a town just south of here."

Clemont then turned to Bonnie, "Bonnie I prefer that you come with us so that you don't catch any sickness…" Clemont then turned to Serena. "I guess you will take care of him then right?"

Serena noticed this was a huge opportunity to show how much she cared for Ash so she nodded. Serena gave her tablet to Bonnie just in case they got lost before she left. The others then left the tent, but before they did, Brock turned to Serena, "Take good care of him!"

Serena pumped her fist and replied, "Just leave it to me!" the others left and then Serena turned to her crush. With the bowl of water, she dumped her handkerchief into the water and put it on Ash's forehead. Then, after putting her hand in Ash's cheek she felt that the temperature was not as high. Serena then smiled at Pikachu, Braixen and Brionne, "He will be feeling better in no time!"

"Pika!"

"Braixen!"

"Brionne!"

Suddenly, Serena felt a little movement come from Ash's body as she turned to him. Ash then turned in the sleeping bag and went back to sleep. The movement was so slight that Serena was scared he might have woken up.

" **BOOOOOOOOOuuuuuuuwww!"** a deafening sound of an electric guitar came from the outside making Serena recoil in shock along with the other pokemon. "What the actual f*ck?" Serena asked herself as she left the tent only to find a rockstar. This rockstar had make up all over his face, two giant bass amplifiers on his backpack and a fricking Noivern behind him!

"VERN!" The Noivern called with a smirk.

The rockstar then pointed at Serena with his blue guitar and shouted, "You! Do you know where I can find the great Ash Ketchum?" The rockstar gave another strum of his guitar and it made Serena, Pikachu and Serena's two mid form evolved starters to cover their ears.

"He's sleeping right now!" Serena retaliated as she felt threatened by the sight if a man completely ruining the fact she was taking care of someone.

The Rockstar then strummed his guitar AGAIN and said, "Tell him that Jack the Noivern master challenges his Noivern to a volume battle…! Unless he is too scared!" Jack made a cute face at that last part as he and his Noivern laughed uncontrollably.

"Ok, ok, I will get him," Serena resigned as she knew how it was pointless to even try and shake the guy now.

"Wow really?!" Jack exclaimed as he got closer.

Serena nodded slowly and retreated with her pokemon and Pikachu into the tent.

 **Serena POV:**

What am I going to do? If Ash finds out he has a battle he will jump out of the sleeping bag with no hesitation. I turn to the pokemon that look at me with confused looks as my gaze focuses on some clothes that were next to the sleeping bag. Then, I see the scarf right next to Ash and I know I have no choice.

For Ash's sake…

Wait.

 _Where am I going to change?_

Sh*t!

Ok, wait. I look at what I have to deal with. Braixen and Brionne are females so they can handle it. Pikachu is a male, I don't… wait, that little mouse has seen my body exposed at Santalune didn't he? My face started to heat up as I resigned to the fact that I had to change.

At least Ash is knocked out.

I remove my dress and at the sight of me exposed, Pikachu blushed and looked away. Of course he would, what a cute mouse. I didn't mind Braixen and Brionne who prevented a tempted Pikachu from turning around and I giggled at that. I then begin to put on Ash's jacket. It was warm I have to admit and it did feel kind of nice to be snug in it all the time. I put on Ash's pants and blush heavily. I GOT INTO HIS PANTS! I swiftly tuck my hair up and put on the cap while reaching over for the scarf and putting it on around my neck. Finally, I grab Ash's belt with pokeballs and only grab Noivern's pokeball since I did not need the others and slip on Ash's fingerless gloves.

I was about to leave with the other pokemon outside looking completely like Ash, but I went back to Ash's side to check on him. His face was still flushed red, but it was a little more than it was before. I check his temperature and his fever had risen A LOT!

Before I head out, wishing I could be with him, I put another cold handkerchief on his forehead to see if it helps.

 **Ash POV a minute earlier:**

Is someone going through my stuff?

I slowly peek through my eyes to see what is going on…

HOLY MOLY LOOK AT HER BODY!

My face starts to heat up so much that I swore I could break any thermometer. I close my eyes and feel a hand touch my cheek to later recoil it after barely feeling it… Yup, that was my blush.

I then feel a nice cool handkerchief touch my forehead and stay there.

Thanks Serena.

 **Back outside normal POV:**

Serena had a pokeball in her hand as she was being followed by Pikachu, Braixen and Brionne. They all had a sweatdrop as they saw the guitarist strum his guitar in a loud sound again and smirk at the sight of Serena dressed up as Ash.

Serena pumped her fist, "Are you ready to feel my wrath? I am Ash Ketchum and I accept your challenge." Serena tried talking in such an Ash like tone that it made her laugh at how the impression was awkward.

"So we finally meet Ash, name's Jack, and you are going down!" Jack then pointed forward. "GO NOIVERN!"

"Noi… **VEEEERRRNNN!** " the Noivern shrieked an ear blasting cry as he got in front of his trainer.

Serena looked back at the tent with nerves. She knew Ash could wake up from all the noise. Serena had to take her chances though, so she bit her lip and in an Ash voice threw the pokeball while shouting, "Noivern I choose you!"

Noivern appeared from the pokeball and stared down the opponent, "Noi… **VVVVVEEEEEEERRRRRNNN!** " He cried also making Serena and the others cover their ears. Noivern then turned to Serena and instantly cocked his head expecting Ash. When Noivern saw that it was Serena though, Noivern nodded at her.

Serena felt relieved that Noivern was wanting to help so she was glad it could get under way.

 **From a safe distance:**

"Two Noivern and they look strong two," a male with a gray suit in said. "They can be sold for around nine thousand Kaleuros each!"

A female next to him smirked as she pumped her fist, "Let's catch them!"

 **Battle music start! Serena (Noivern) vs Jack (Noivern):**

Serena started by putting her arm out palm down like Ash does in his battles and in an Ash voice, she calls out the first move, "Noivern use Boomburst!" Serena then gulped as she was going to not be to sure about how this battle would play out. Noivern made his loud usual cry and launched the sound wave beam at the opposing sound wave dragon.

Jack looked very amused to see the power in Noivern, "So it is strong, huh?" Jack then stuck his tongue out and threw out his fist, "Use you Boomburst!"

Both of the sound based moves collided in a stalemate in the middle of the grass. "RAISE THE VOLUME!" Serena shouted while putting her fist s at her side. She needed Ash's Noivern to overpower, but she knew she still had to risk Ash waking up which was something she did not want. Ash's Noivern made his cry louder and there was an explosion in the middle of the collision where Ash's Noivern had his boomburst go through towards the opponent's dragon.

"Dodge it quick!" Jack shouted. Jack's Noivern saw the attack coming and dodged by flying upwards. "Now use dragon claw!" Jack's Noivern then formed two scaly green claws that rushed Ash's Noivern in immense speed.

"Dodge it Noivern!" Serena shouted with a large amount of fear for the dragon claw since it was an obvious super effective hit. Just as Jack's Noivern was going to smash his claws into Ash's Noivern, the latter spread his wings and rolled to the left completely avoiding the attack.

Jack smiled again and ordered a move that no one had expected, "shadow ball, rapid fire!"

"VERN VERN VERN!" Jack's Noivern shouted as he formed five dark purple balls and then fired them at Ash's Noivern.

Serena recoiled at first,but hearing some encouragement from Pikachu, Braixen and Brionne got her on her own feet, "Dodge it again!" Serena shouted as she pumped her fist with one hand and put her arm out.

"Noivern!" Ash's Noivern shouted as he flew around the shadow balls that came his way, until one of the shadow balls crossed paths with Noivern's trajectory.

"Boomburst!" Serena instantly commanded. Ash's Noivern then charged up his sound based beam and shot it spiraling at the shadow ball. The collision made an explosion that sent a lot of smoke in a large smoke cloud on top of the area in which the two were battling.

Jack then smirked and strummed his guitar. "Hide in the smoke!" Jack's Noivern saw the cloud of smoke and flew inside which was obviously a good spot for Jack.

"Ah!" Serena gasped as she saw Jack's Noivern completely disappear. 'Where will it come from?' Serena thought as she scanned the place where the two sound wave dragons were battling.

Noivern then landed in front of Serena and waved his bat like wings at her. "Noi noi vern Noivern NOIVERN!"

Serena instantly went wide eyed and smirked. 'Noivern is right, I have been watching Ash's battles the closest out of everyone!' Serena thought. Serena then out her hand out and shouted, "Clear it all with Hurricane!" Noivern flapped his wings as he created a strong breeze that spiraled and made the smoke completely disappear. As Ash's scarf waved with Serena, she pumped her fist, "Noivern use sky attack!"

"No way!" Jack shouted in disbelief. Jack then recomposed himself, "Acrobatics counter it!"

Both Noivern closed the gap in a large explosion. The gold covered Noivern though overpowered and the blue covered Noivern fell in front of his trainer.

"Pika!"

"Xen Braixen!"

"Brionne!"

Pikachu and Serena's pokemon kept cheering on Serena because the last attack was impressive from their part thus making them cheer louder.

"Noivern are you alright?" Jack asked with a shocked face. Noivern affirmed he could battle and flew back into the air making Jack smirk, "This… This is what I have been waiting for!"

Serena the smirked, "You just wait, because when it comes to me, anything is possible." Serena then mentally jumped from her body and screamed in joy for her cosplay actually working.

 **Walking back to the area where the gang set up camp:**

Brock, Clemont and Bonnie were walking back with medicine as they heard multiple explosions going on. When they reached the campsite they noticed Ash battling someone Noivern against Noivern.

"No way Ash is battling," Clemont replied as he squinted to get a better look.

"Wait," Brock replied as he looked closer. What he saw was a pale face with blue eyes and honey blond hair with a blush in the cheeks. "That has to be…"

"Serena!" Bonnie shouted leading the group and reaching the Ash cosplaying female.

Serena instantly put a 'crap' face and hoped that no one would-

"Why are you dressed up-"

"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Serena shouted while putting her hands in the air. Noivern mimicked the action.

"Sere-"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH"

"NOI NOI NOI NOI NOIVERN!"

"Are they your friends?" Jack asked while cocking his head.

"Huh, my friends?" Serena asked as she put a hand near the scarf. Serena then panicked a little and got herself together by putting an Ash like pose and saying, "yea you bet!" Serena then dashed to the three newcomers anime style. "Did you get the medicine?" Serena asked with a dreaded look in her face. She obviously did not expect the three to be back so soon from getting the medicine… It was a two mile walk to go and come back! Bonnie obviously had that look in her face of: 'Really?' as Serena tried to ignore her. Clemont and Brock were very surprised to even see Serena this way.

"Yea, what really matters is, what is going on with you?" Clemont asked with a sheepish face.

Serena then whispered to the three companions her trouble, "They challenged Ash and Noivern to a battle…"

Brock then spoke up, "What really brings up my curiosity is… _When and where did you change clothes_?" **(I would have asked this if I was there XD).**

Serena's face at hearing this instantly lost all of its color. She felt like she wanted to die. Bonnie evilly smirked at seeing the response of the honey blonde performer. Serena then blushed and said, "In the tent, why?"

Brock then sighed in a relieved tone, "Because that guy you are battling, he sticks his tongue out and it freaks me out so much… I did not want you to have to live through _that_ experience." Serena slightly chuckled at that one. Of course, no one would have totally suspected that Ash saw anything since he was "sleeping". "Anyways," Brock started again. "We will give Ash the medicine and make him feel better in no time!"

Serena then stood back and exclaimed while pumping her fist and a slight blush, "Yea, I am counting on you!" Serena then turned towards the battle as the other three went to give Ash the medicine… Except one who stayed back to tell Serena something so important.

With a sly face, Bonnie creeped up at Serena and said, "Oh yea, good luck _future Mrs. Ketchum_."

Serena's face instantly blushed red at that remark and looked at where Bonnie went. Getting herself together with accepting the fact that it was one of her goals to even become "Mrs. Ketchum", Serena turned back to the battle with a smile in her face. Serena then changed her voice back to the more boy like voice and exclaimed, "Sorry to keep you waiting!"

 **Back at the tent:**

Brock and Clemont filled a spoonful of the medicine and gave it to the raven haired trainer that was struggling to sleep in his bed. After tossing and turning a bit, Ash took the spoonful and puckered his lips at how sour the medicine tasted.

"Come on Ash, this will make you feel better," Brock replied as he readied another spoonful. Ash took this spoonful as Bonnie walked in from harassing Serena.

"I hope Ash feels better soon," Bonnie replied.

"Nenne," Dedenne agreed from the pouch looking at the raven haired trainer.

 **Back at the battle:**

Serena prepared her next attack by putting her arm behind her in an Ash pose he used against Clemont in his gym battle, "Noivern hit it with a supersonic!"

"Noi….-"

Just as Noivern was about to fire his attack, two nets came in and captured the two Noiverns. Serena and Jack instantly recoiled at the sight of the two sound wave dragons being taken captive in such a manner. Suddenly, two people in gray suits came out of a pickup truck that pulled up in front of the two Noiverns. One of the humans was a male with pale skin and sharp green eyes while the other one was a tanned female with long curly hair. She also had blue eyes that were filled with coldness.

"Who are you guys?!" Jack shouted in worry at his Noivern being taken away.

The male looked at the rockstar with a smirk, "we are just pokemon poachers stealing some two powerful Noiverns so that we can sell them."

"You wouldn't dare!" Serena shouted with pure power, but letting her angelic voice seep through her disguise.

The female looked at Serena with a confused look, "So, the transgender thinks that we should not take them."

"Transgender?" Jack asked as he turned to Serena. "Wait are you that girl that I talked to before?"

Serena looked away and grabbed her hat with embarrassment, "Uhhhhhh…"

"Who cares, we are going to get away!" The male said as he jumped into the front seat and the female stayed in the back of the pickup truck. The truck then began to drive away and Serena and Jack began to chase after it hopelessly. Pikachu, Braixen and Brionne also chased after the truck, but it was too fast.

" **LIZARDON, Doragon Croaw!"** a new voice ripped through the air as Serena and Jack witnessed a Charizard fly at full speed over the trainers and slash with a green pair of claws the net at the back of the pickup that held the Noivern thus freeing the two sound wave dragons from the danger.

"Noivern!" Ash's Noivern replied as it rushed to the side of a raven haired trainer that had his Charizard also land next to him.

"Nice to see you safe too Noivern," Ash said as he petted Noivern's head.

Serena saw Ash and asked, "You are ok?"

"Yea, thanks to Clemont, Brock, and Bonnie!" Ash replied as he pumped his fists.

"It usually takes a day for someone to recover," Brock sighed as he scratched the back of his head seeing Ash already in a battle.

"Welp, it is amazing what medicine can do nowadays," Clemont remarked sheepishly.

Ash then began to stretch his muscles and legs while talking to Serena. "Hey, Serena, to be honest, you actually look really amazing in my outfit." As Serena heard this she blushed a bit knowing that Ash saw her cosplaying as him. Ash then flashed a toothy grin, "I heard some of what you were doing from the tent, you were sounding awesome!"

Jack looked at Serena with confusion, "So you were that girl?"

Serena just smiled and looked at Jack with remorse, "Sorry, I meant no harm." Serena then removed the cap and Jack instantly went wide eyed. Serena then turned to Ash and exclaimed, "ASH!" as she threw the cap over to him.

Ash caught the hat in mid air and put it on with a smile, "So, who here thinks they can steal my Noivern?" At that time the two poachers popped up and revealed two Zubat to battle. Ash just stood there with boredom at the two poacher's decision of pokemon and pointed at them, "Noivern use boomburst! Pikachu use thunderbolt!"

Serena then joined Ash, "Brionne use bubble and Braixen use fire blast!"

All four pokemon charged their beams at the poachers and fired them with great power. When the four beams came close, they combined and made a huge explosion out of the pickup truck while sending the two poachers and their Zubats flying.

"Gruaw…" Charizard landed next to Ash and put on a disgusted face because Ash did not attack with him.

Ash then sheepishly turned to Charizard and said, "Sorry, I just wanted to use ranged attacks and you don't have any." Charizard then gave Ash a little ember and put it on Ash's face thus burning him. "Ah, Charizard what the heck!" Charizard then looked at Ash and smirked while turning his face away.

Jack then caught up to Ash who now had Pikachu on his shoulder and asked him, "So you are the real Ash Ketchum?"

Ash looked at Serena and to Noivern and scratched the back of his head, "Heh, you were battling pretty much the real one anyways." Serena then blushed and turned her head so that no one could notice it, of course Bonnie and Brock did. Ash then spoke up, "But I do accept your challenge, Noivern want to battle?" Ash asked as he turned to his dragon.

"Noivern!" Noivern affirmed while looking at the opposing Noivern.

 **A little While Later Serena POV:**

I was finally in my real clothes, but I do have to say that Ash's clothes are fun to wear. Maybe I should wear them more often? Nah… We'll see if I even have to. I see the battle between Ash and the two Noiverns and I am cheering Ash and his Noivern on until the end. With Pikachu in my arms, I smile at him every time Ash calls out the same strategy I used during my battle against Jack. I guess I do now understand what Ash meant by: "there are two Ash Ketchums". Anyways, my cheeks burn as I see Ash do his best, he just made Jack's Noivern take on two Boombursts in a row! Talk about being champion material already.

"Hey Serena," I turn to see Bonnie sitting next to me. "Is Ash destroying him yet?"

I turn to Bonnie and smile, "He has been since the battle started."

Bonnie then smirked as she pulled something out, it was my navigation tablet, "Here you forgot this."

I smile as I accept the tablet back and turn it on. It showed the route to the pharmacy which was a mile south so I exit to the home screen only for heat to rise to my cheeks. "Pika Pika pika pika pika!" Pikachu bursts out laughing in my arms as he looks at the picture I have as the background of my home screen:

The picture was of me throwing Ash his hat with a smile before he battles the poachers. Of course I was dressed as Ash.

Bonnie also laughs a bit as I turn to her, "Did you take a picture of me dressed up as Ash!?"

"Yea!" Bonnie exclaimed with glee. "Did I embarrass you? You can delete it if you want."

I sigh as I am about to admit something to Bonnie. I form a blush in my face, but I don't care about showing my blushes to Bonnie anymore, she _knows_ anyways, "You better not delete that picture. I don't know when I will have the opportunity to dress as him again." I say as I turn to the picture, "Plus, I actually think I look kind of hot in that picture don't you think?"

Bonnie looks at me with a smirk, "You better use that picture to your advantage, _Ash said so himself that he likes it what you dress up as him_."

My face could not have been any redder after that last part.

 **A/N: Comical chapter wow! I know it is based on XYZ 22 and it is really a great filler that everyone likes. This arc is called the development arc. We have seen so much development with Greninja, that we have barely seen what Ash's other pokemon are capable of. So, this is the first of the next couple of chapters that will focus solely on stories of Ash's pokemon.**

 **I hope you guys enjoyed! Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **ArmorshippingFan: Glad you enjoyed it! I am slowly integrating Alola into the story, so be hyped for when we get a lot of new stuff come in!**

 **HybridAshGreninja: Even I know a story needs Greninja in order for it to be a good one! JK, but still, Greninja plays an important role later on! Thanks for reviewing!**

 **Guest 1: Glad you enjoyed it! Will keep up the good work!**

 **Also guys, I want to thank you guys for 20k views! Let's see how much farther I can get!**

 **I appreciate the support!**


	25. Chapter 25

**Hunter at an undisclosed location:**

"Blaziken! Eevee! redirect your fire at those guys in orange suits!" Hunter shouted as he pointed in the direction of the team Flare grunts that were headed his way. Hunter had to find a way to completely stop the grunts from reaching his objective, so he began to break into a sprint towards the object he was looking a.

When he reached the object, he examined it in great detail. It was a large cage that had three legendary pokemon he recognized as Articuno, Moltres, and Zapdos which were unable to attack because of restraints to the wings.. They were all there completely trapped and desiring to get out. It was as if the organization had been trying to get ahold of these legendaries. Hunter looked for a way to make the cage open so he looked around and noticed that it was best if he used one of the pokemon he had. He reached into his pocked at took out a pokeball and revealed it. "Feraligatr!" the pokemon called out.

Hunter turned to the blue crocodile that came out of the pokeball and said, "use ice fang and break this cage!" Feraligatr looked at the giant cage that was in front of him and he made large blue mandibles. When the mandibles chomped down on the metal bars of the cage, the bars froze over to a degree that Hunter found it possible to break through. "Now, use brick break!"

"GATR!" Feraligatr called out as he made his hand glow white and in a downcut motion hit the bar at the point where it was frozen. The entire bar collapsed without a problem and Hunter was able to get into the cage with Feraligatr.

As he looked at the three pokemon, he noticed the restraints on the wings and instantly turned to the Johto water starter again, "We need to use another brick break and free them!"

Feraligatr once more made the white hand and down cut into the restraints which at first crackled in electricity. The three pokemon noticed the weakening of the restraints and began to struggle to stay free. After some time, the three pokemon were able to make the restraints completely give away and they used a combination of fire blast, thunderbolt, and ice beam to break the cage into a huge hole. Crouching in order to prevent some debris, Hunter and Feraligatr noticed the three legendaries help his Blaziken and Eevee fend off against the grunts who had out their Houndour. The three legendaries easily blew out of proportion the grunts and Hunter without effort came out of the cage with Feraligatr to find the grunts recalling the pokemon and then fleeing.

"Wow…" Hunter said with some awe at the power of the legendaries.

"Eevee!"

"Ziken!"

The two pokemon that Hunter originally had came to him with extreme amounts of happiness knowing that they succeeded.

Articuno and Moltres looked down at Hunter and then looked at Zapdos, who seemed to be looking unsure about something. Zapdos then looked at the others and nodded. Articuno and Moltres then took flight and left as Zapdos stayed looking over Hunter. "DOOS!" It called out with immense power that it caused the ground to rumble.

"Zapdos…" Hunter said as the legendary pokemon flew down towards him. Hunter stepped back a little alarmed, but then slowly extended his arm to touch the electric bird pokemon. The electric bird took the hand and Hunter made a large realization. "You are trusting me with your power?"

Zapdos stared into Hunter's eyes and nodded.

Hunter then slowly took out a pokeball, and with the large beak, Zapdos hit the button and got turned to red energy. The pokeball shook mysteriously and then bobbed once before stopping and having a little bit of stars showing up. A critical capture and…

Hunter just caught a legendary pokemon…

 **A/N: I have decided to update weekly now, this is mostly because it is more convenient with my writing schedule.**

 **So you are probably wondering why I am giving an OC a legendary pokemon… Just wait, it will be a good role to play later on, you just wait!**

 **Anyways, we are going to continue this short arc which will last only a couple more chapters before we actually reach Lumiose and begin the real challenge that Ash has been waiting for. I am hoping you guys are enjoying the fic right now!**

 **Also, I have so much planned out that I am so hype for what is to come for the future of this fic, I even have some awesome songs that may… (hint hint nudge nudge) inspire some AMVs for the future. Specially the Greninja one I have planned!**

 **Anyways, I have up to around chapter 50 planned out to a good amount of detail so enjoy this arc as the longest arc of probably the entire fic for now will probably start at around chapter 28.**

 **Just a little bit of context on this episode, we are getting an episode focused on Goodra… and no… ASH IS NOT RELEASING GOODRA! (This is not the anime!) LOL Ash needs him. Yes, Goodra will be getting an interesting chapter today, and this will bring back one of the most unique gym leaders that we have probably seen from another region. I will try to make things go smoothly, but you tell me how it goes.**

 **For once I won't add a battle scene to a chapter. I don't know why, but the last couple of chapters all had battles, I guess I really like writing them don't I?**

 **Anyways, without further ado, let's keep going on the adventure!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 25- A Crashing Mastery!

 **With Ash and the others:**

After their encounter with Jack, Ash and the others packed up their stuff from the original camp site and were ready to begin moving. Ash had Goodra help out with the packing as Goodra was very capable of carrying many items that weighed a decent amount of weight. Ash, Pikachu, Serena, Bonnie, Clemont, and Brock all got their backpacks and decided to move on through the forest that was next to them unto make it to Lumiose City. Goodra was around with the group as Ash wanted to get some of the mobility that Goodra could have increased knowing that Goodra was kind of slow. Ash also thought that it would be nice to have the giant dragon around as it was a very nice and playful character.

"So, when should we reach Lumiose City?" Ash asked Serena who had her travel guide out… Completely ignoring the fact that Serena had a picture of herself in Ash's clothes as the background picture.

Serena looked at the map and said, "We should be at Lumiose City in give or take… a couple of days by walking."

"The scenery is great anyways," Brock said as he looked around. The forest was dense, but it had a good amount of pokemon crawling up the trees, something that made the group smile completely. "You know, I feel like tonight we may be able to see a _meteor shower_ according to some reading I did in the past."

Goodra then stopped in his tracks… "Pikachu?" Pikachu looked at Goodra in worry then seeing something alarming. "PIKAPI!"

"Goo…" Goodra began to brace himself like he was going to sneeze. Everyone looked at Goodra with a little bit of worry as there was an orange orb that was forming in Goodra's mouth. Goodra looked like he was going to sneeze and everyone knew that when Goodra uses a move, it can be devastating. "DRA… GOOODRA!" Goodra shouted as he launched a yellow orb of energy into the sky. Everyone watched in awe as the orb reached a peak and when it looked like it was going to explode, it just popped and began to fly down. The orb then crashed in the ground behind Goodra and caused a small explosion in the ground.

"What… was… that," Bonnie said completely confused as to what just happened. It was true, nobody expected something to happen like that. In fact, Ash walked up to Goodra to see the well being of the pseudo-legendary dragon.

"Pika?"

"Goodra, are you ok?" Ash asked the pokemon while putting a hand on his stomach.

"Goo… Goodra?" Goodra asked completely confused. The latter was also oblivious as to what just happened.

Clemont then came in behind the pokemon and said, "Maybe Goodra just learned a new move, why don't you check Ash?"

Ash looked at the inventor and said, "Ok." Ash then took out his pokedex and scanned Goodra as he looked at the moves the dragon knew: 'rain dance, bide, thunder, and draco meteor… WAIT DRACO METEOR?!'. "Guys," Ash started grabbing the attention of everyone. "I think Goodra may have just learned draco meteor."

"Wow! A powerful move!" Bonnie shouted in glee and jumping around accidentally waking up Dedenne.

"Nene?" The fairy type asked as he looked at Goodra and then went back into his pouch to sleep some more… What a mouse that was.

"Wait, why didn't it shatter into meteors like the move usually does?" Brock asked while he stroked his chin.

Clemont found this as a great opportunity to jump into the case and took out a device from his backpack while shouting with a smirk and adjusting the glare of his glasses, "CLEMONTIC GEAR ON!" Everyone turned to him with confusion while they looked at the device Clemont had. "I made this device in case we ran into a conflict precisely like this one, it is called the meteor shower three thousand!" Clemont then went up to Goodra and put a special mouthpiece in Goodra's snout. "By amplifying the power, I am able to make it so that draco meteor serves exactly like it is supposed to." Clemont then turned the device on with a remote that had a little antennae and a red button in the middle.

"Wow, science is so amazing!" Ash replied with glowing eyes as he saw the object in Goodra's snout light up. Everyone else looked at Clemont with pure confusion.

Clemont then turned to the raven haired trainer and said, "Make Goodra use draco meteor again Ash."

"O-Ok," Ash said with a smile. Ash then pumped his fist and exclaimed, "Goodra use draco meteor!"

Goodra smirked as he looked up at the sky and made a large battle cry. Goodra then formed a yellow orb in his mouth that was tainted red thanks to Clemont's mouthpiece. As soon as the orb was fully charged, the orb flew into the sky. Everyone expected the orb to shatter into devastating meteors… But the orb fell down again and crashed into the ground.

Clemont looked at the mouthpiece and then the remote, "I think I need to add more power to this..." Clemont then began to hit the red button at a fast pace expecting a result…

"Goo!" Goodra shouted in worry as he saw the device turn all red, begin to heat up and shoot out smoke. Goodra braced himself and then the device exploded covering him and the others in soot. Everyone coughed in the ground as Clemont admitted to another failure, but it was not the end. Goodra began to glow bright red and with a large battle cry. "GOOOOO DRAAAA!" Goodra shot a white beam into the forest away from anyone's harm and then there was a clear and visible explosion at the other end of the forest which left the others watching in complete shock. "Goodra…" Goodra said sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head.

"There goes Goodra's bide," Serena said with a smile looking at what Goodra had done to the forest.

"Yup…" Brock said completely dazed from the soot.

"Maybe next time I will make a better machine, oh man," Clemont admitted. "Sorry guys."

Ash smiled at the inventor and said, "It's ok, it happens, it was funny to see that actually activate Goodra's bide too."

"I guess…" Clemont said looking down and adjusting his glasses.

"That's my brother," Bonnie said as she fell flat anime style.

"Pikapi?" Pikachu got the attention of Ash by pulling on Ash's shirt.

Ash then turned to Pikachu, "Huh? What it is it Pikachu?" Pikachu then pointed at another person that was not in the usual traveling group. It was another man that had a large stature in his body, very well into his fifties as his hair was a little gray and there was a large beard that covered this man's mouth and bottom part of his nose. The man had pale skin and yellow eyes along with gray pants and a rolled up sleeved shirt that had two brown stripes with yellow spikes on top and a green bow tie in the top of his shirt. The man looked at Ash, then Goodra and then turned back to Ash.

"Is this your Goodra?" The man asked while signaling to the gooey and purple dragon next to Ash. Everyone looked at the man with confusion as Ash slowly nodded his head. "I am Drayden, I am a dragon master, and I noticed that your Goodra was attempting to learn the strongest dragon type move in the world."

"Yea," Ash spoke up finally. "Nice to meet you, I am Ash and this is my partner Pikachu, you probably know who Goodra is now," Ash said as he stood up and offered Drayden handshake which he accepted.

"I'm Bonnie, and this is Dedenne," Bonnie said as she signaled to the pokemon in her pouch.

"Nenne!" Dedenne said as he popped out of the pouch in Bonnie's bag.

"I'm Clemont, nice to meet you," Clemont said with a polite bow.

"I'm Serena," Serena said with a bright smile.

Brock turned to Drayden and recognized him, "I'm Brock, and wait, are you _the_ Drayden, the Opelucid Gym Leader of Unova?"

Drayden then turned to Brock and smiled under his beard, "Yes, in fact I am the gym leader of Opelucid city." Drayden then turned to Ash and Goodra, "I see that Goodra is having difficulty using draco meteor, mind if I help you two learn the full potential of the move?"

Ash and Goodra shared a glance and smirked, Ash then looked at Drayden and said, "We would appreciate it!"

"Good, you are eager to learn right?" Drayden said as he took out a pokeball and threw it out into the air. "Haxorus come on out!"

"HAXORR!" A large green pokemon with blood red claws and an axe like snout shouted as he stood tall after being materialized from the pokeball. The pokemon known as Haxorus turned to his trainer as Drayden explained how he would help Ash and Goodra with their newly learned move.

 **After Drayden and Haxorus lead the group to an open field:**

"Ash," Drayden called out to Ash and his Goodra. "Come with me and Haxorus to the other side of the field." Drayden then noticed the others that were with Ash and said, "Don't worry about Ash and Goodra, we won't take long."

Ash then turned to the others and then to Pikachu and said, "mind if you stay here with them?"

"Pika!" Pikachu shook his head and ran up to Serena and went up her shoulder which made the honey blonde smile and giggle.

"Alright, see you guys later!" Ash said as he, Goodra, Drayden and Haxorus began to walk to the other side of the open field.

"See you later Ash!" Brock shouted.

"Have fun!" Bonnie exclaimed.

"Dennenee!"

"PIKAPI PIKACHU!"

"Good luck Ash! I know you will do it!" Serena exclaimed the loudest of them all. Of course Serena… Of course…

Ash and Goodra gave a small wave and then turned to the dragon master, "So, where are we going?"

Drayden looked at his Haxorus as they walked, "To a relaxing spot where we can concentrate, we need you and Goodra to be in synch for this to happen."

Ash then looked at Goodra and smiled. He knew that if both he and his dragon could pull their heads together, they could make a strong move happen between them.

After walking for about ten minutes, Drayden found a nice lagoon where at the shore of it, he sat down in the grass along with his Haxorus. Ash and Goodra did the same hoping that they would be able to learn from this.

Drayden then spoke up, "Look at the lagoon here." Drayden then pointed at the lagoon and Ash noticed there was some Wooper and Quagsire playing around with some Lotad and Ludicolo. "What do you notice about the atmosphere of this lagoon?"

Ash then looked at the water and the pokemon playing within it and said, "It looks… Serene, I also notice that the pokemon are enjoying themselves." Ash then paused, "It is so calm," Ash looked to Drayden and said, "I have not been in a situation this relaxing for a while now."

"Goodra," Goodra agreed with his trainer and also looked at the other pokemon playing in the lagoon. Goodra had to admit, it was a nice place that he could relax in.

Drayden then smiled under his beard and turned to Ash, "You are getting the point Ash, this place is very relaxing, when you train, you probably have not thought of training the mind as a side of physical training." Drayden then turned to his Haxorus, "Haxorus, how relaxing is this for you?" Haxorus gave a happy cry to his trainer as Ash watched in awe. The connection between trainer and dragon was something that he wanted to have with his Goodra. "Ash, the point is getting you and Goodra to put all of your power into one point."

"One point?" Ash asked completely confused.

Drayden looked at Haxorus and said, "Yes, one point. When your Goodra can put all of his power into one point, he will strengthen his bide by a lot, but most importantly, it will make it so that Goodra can put everything he has into a draco meteor." Drayden then looked at Goodra who was listening intently, "Get your Goodra to use a move and make sure that he optimizes the strength of that very move, do not worry about performing draco meteor."

Ash then looked at Goodra and said, "Goodra, how about you do a rain dance with all of your power? Then we can see how you can put all of your energy into one point."

"Goodra," Goodra nodded as he stood up. Goodra then looked at the clouds and made a large battle cry: "GOOOO DRAAAAA!" From that battle cry, clouds formed over the entire lagoon and made it pour rain. Drayden saw the power behind the rain dance and smirked: It was more powerful than any rain dance he had ever seen.

"Wow Goodra, that rain dance is so much more powerful than I have ever seen you do it!" Ash shouted as he looked down at the slimy dragon. Goodra then looked at his trainer and smiled.

Drayden then turned to Goodra and smiled, "Maybe you should now try the actual draco meteor."

Ash then nodded and stood up, "Goodra… USE DRACO METEOR!"

Goodra then smirked and remembered to focus all of his power into one point. "Goooo…." Goodra began to form the yellow orb in his mouth. Drayden, Haxorus, and Ash watched carefully as Goodra charged up the attack from his mouth and was ready to shoot it at a large propensity into the air. Goodra then arched his head back as he made the orb even bigger than anyone could imagine. "GOOOO!" Goodra then prepared for putting all of his power into the orb. "GOODRA!" Goodra exclaimed as he shot the beam into the sky and the orb kept going and going until it reached its climax. Suddenly, a large explosion was heard as the orb split into a huge branch of many falling meteors with yellow streaks of light falling after it. At the sight, Ash and Goodra's faces lit up.

Drayden saw the trajectory of the meteors towards the pokemon in the lagoon and shouted out to his Haxorus while putting his arm out, "Haxorus use dragon pulse!" Haxorus reared back his head and shot out a colorful beam of many colors that was dragon shaped that went towards the falling action of the many meteors. The large dragon shaped beam then collided with the meteors and caused a massive explosion in the air that sent many colors down as a display to the pokemon on the lagoon. Drayden obviously knew that Goodra had really shown himself as worthy of the move as it was one of the best executed draco meteors he had ever seen. Drayden then turned to Ash as he recalled and thanked his Haxorus, "You have done well, now you may return with your friends."

"What about you Drayden?" Ash asked.

"Goo?"

"I must be going on my way, I have a mission to attend to in learning about the many dragon types of this region," Drayden said as he started to walk away from Ash. "Let's have a battle, I want to battle your Goodra with my Haxorus some day."

"You bet, also, thanks!" Ash replied as he watched Drayden slowly become smaller in the distance. "You just wait."

"Goodra," Goodra replied as a smirk. The trainer and dragon exchanged a glance and then high fived as a sign of the growth in their power. The two then began to walk back towards the others and after ten minutes, they found the entire group having fun on the grass land. Pikachu was being petted and combed by Bonnie as Clemont and Brock were preparing lunch for the group.

Serena though, she was staring out from the top of the hill with flowers surrounding her in the grass as she sat, next to her she had Sylveon and Floette staring at the sky as well. Serena's honey blonde hair gently waved in the breeze and her blue eyes kept glittering. Goodra elbowed Ash and gave him a funny smile which Ash did not understand. It was as if Goodra knew something that Ash didn't (everyone does…). Of course, Ash did not understand, but he walked up to the group and said, "Hey guys, I am back!"

"Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted as he jumped from Bonnie's lap and went to Ash. Pikachu then got on Ash's shoulder and Ash smiled at the electric mouse looking at how nice he was combed.

"Ash, we were preparing some food for when you came back!" Bonnie skipped around as she came up to Ash. "You must be hungry!" Bonnie tried to drag Ash by the wrist.

Ash smiled at the younger female and let her drag him to the table where Brock and Clemont were. Ash smiled at Clemont and Brock as the pokemon doctor spoke up, "So, how did it go?"

Ash just smirked, "How do you think?" Ash then turned to the purple dragon that was playing with Dedenne. "I think it was a relaxing experience."

"Ash relaxing?" Clemont asked Ash. "When I first met you when you challenged the gym, I was not expecting such an energetic person." Ash smiled at the electric type gym leader. "I think it was nice to relax, especially after all of what you went through with Greninja."

"Yea," Ash agreed to the last statement as he sat down in front of the two other males in the group, "I am glad we were able to find out our true potential, and I have finally found my true potential with Goodra too."

"I'm glad," Brock replied as he served Ash some Kanto food. "Just like home Ash, I hope you like it."

Ash took one bite and instantly made his tastebuds water in his mouth as he tasted the food, "It reminds me so much of when I lived in Pallet Town." Ash then looked down. "Does remind me a little bit about my mom though…"

Brock then went up to Ash and put a hand on his shoulder as Pikachu also patted Ash's back, "Enjoy the food Ash, good memories should not be antagonized, keep them as some of your most valuable treasures." Ash turned to Brock and smiled as Clemont also gave a reassuring smile to the raven haired trainer.

"Thanks guys," Ash said as he continued to eat down the food. Of course he would enjoy anything that was served the way he would like it.

Meanwhile Serena was looking out into the sky while sitting in the grass. She spoke to Sylveon and Floette at the same time, "Do you two think I made people smile?"

"Veon," Sylveon then felt Sylveon's feelers around her arm. Serena looked at Sylveon and smiled as Floette came to her side and allowed Serena to smell her nice smelling flower. The same aroma that one would find in the most expensive perfume.

"I guess I did," Serena told herself as she felt the warm feeling of pleasure radiating from the fairy type pokemon. She did believe in herself enough to know that maybe she could have gotten closer to winning the title of Kalos Queen. She still felt like she had become one step closer to her goal because of how well she did, but she still felt that maybe… Maybe if she would have done something different, she would have won.

Sadly, Serena is oblivious to the fact that she did win.

 **With Diantha:**

Diantha was standing in a special seat that was overlooking a grand hexagonal stadium. She looked at the seats around her and imagined the amount of people that would be watching and cheering. She was excited, this was going to be the first Kalos League Conference that would be held at the heart of the region itself: Lumiose City.

Diantha then slumped in her seat and said, "May the relationships between all of you pokemon be expressed… No that is too long." Diantha then sighed. "I wonder how I will speak in opening day, in fact, I wonder who will walk through those dugouts to challenge the league. I know for a fact that Ash guy is challenging the league… And that Greninja, I wonder how far it will go."

Diantha had been called by Wulfric a day ago and was surprised to see what Ash had done at his gym, but there was also a couple of trainers that she also had her head wrapped around.

The person that Diantha had in her mind was a man by the name of Ashura. She had heard from Korrina he was the hardest challenger she had. The other gym leaders also spoke myths of him sweeping the gyms with an Aegislash or a Zoroark.

Diantha knew this league would be interesting as she stared out at the stadium.

 **That night with the gang:**

The group and Goodra was in their sleeping bags out in the open looking at the sky. The last comet flashed through the sky and everyone looked at the flash of light sprinkle before their very eyes. "And that is the meteor shower," Brock replied very happily as the group smiled at the night sky that cloaked their camp site.

"Oh no! We forgot to make a wish!" Bonnie shouted completely out of nowhere making the others face palm themselves because they forgot to make a wish.

Ash then got an idea as he turned to look at the purple dragon next to him, "Then let's make a wish! Goodra use draco meteor!"

"Goo…" Goodra began to slowly charge up a yellow orb on his mouth. The others watched in awe as Goodra made his draco meteor grow and grow to a large size. "Gooo…. DRAA!" Goodra exclaimed as he shot the giant ball into the air. The others gasped as they watched the climax of the move reach the night sky and float out of the harm's way of the gang. Suddenly, the yellow ball shattered into many meteors that then fell towards the ground.

"Make a wish guys!" Ash told his dumbfounded friends while smirking at Goodra. "I wish that I can have heated battles at the Kalos League!"

"Goo.. Goodra!" Goodra agreed while leaning in to put a slimy hand over Ash which the latter found comforting despite the stickiness.

"Pika…" Pikachu embraced Ash while rubbing his cheeks on Ash's pijamas making small amounts of electricity that sparked a little bit of light.

"I wish that I get to meet cute pokemon!" Bonnie exclaimed while putting on a small blush and putting a hand over her heart.

"I wish to be an amazing pokemon doctor!" Brock implied as he put on a smile and rolled over to his side of the bed to sleep.

"Clemont you forgot to make a wish…" Bonnie implied while pouting her face and scolding her brother.

"O-oh, right," Clemont said as he looked at the draco meteor that was hitting the ground with large explosions in the distance. "I wish everyone's wishes come true."

"You did not even try Clemont," Bonnie pouted as she snuggled with Dedenne in her bed. "Anyways, good night!"

"Good night everyone!" Everyone shouted.

"Nenne!"

"Pika!"

"Goodra!"

Everyone rolled over and got some shut eye as Serena kept herself looking at the sky from her back. The honey blond performer had an unsure look on her face. Suddenly, a bright yellow streak pierced the sky: Another shooting star, this time, a real one… As she saw the shooting star disappear in the distance, confidence surged through her veins and she put a hand to her chest and wished for something…

At a quiet voice, Serena wished:

"I wish that Ash and I can defeat our separate burdens…

… _together_."

 **A/N: Serena's burden? So you thought that this was only about Ash, but you are wrong. I even hinted during a couple of occasions that Serena has an internal conflict, and I even gave a glimpse of it during Ash and Serena's argument in Snowbelle City.**

 **You thought I would not give some more context to the phrase "Don't Give Up Until It's Over"? For all you guys thought, it was just going to help her during Professor Oak's Camp… But it is something bigger that haunts her…**

 **Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter on Goodra, I did want to make it a nice chapter for no battling, but also for Goodra to have a time to learn a fourth move: I mean, he is set up well with his moves to be a monster now, I think he could destroy an entire battlefield at this point!**

 **Anyways, remember to R & R and I will see you guys… Next time!**

 **P.S.: Did Serena just claim she wanted to get through her burden alongside Ash? OOOOOHHH This is getting spicy!**

 **Responding to reviews:**

 **ArmorshippingFan: Glad you enjoyed it,thanks for reviewing! Don't worry about them getting together ;)**

 **Seth: Serena and Ash will be a thing way before the end, that is my plan lol! Flare attack… I might change a lot to not make it too much like the anime. Thanks for reviewing.**

 **Derpen: I got a 4 on my AP Physics exam last year LOL! Yes, what I did was physically impossible, but it is imaginary and I don't always put physics into anything. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Thanks for reviewing!**

 **Guest 1: Glad you enjoyed it bro! I will keep up the good work, thanks for reviewing!**


	26. Chapter 26

"Pichu, come on out!" Serena exclaimed as she took the small electric mouse out of her pokeball. The small mouse had her ears folded over her eyes and then made them go up so that she could see her trainer's blue eyes. The honey blonde performer was in the other side of the forest next to the campsite in which the gang had set up camp. Serena was trying to get to know Pichu a little better as she just caught her. "So Pichu, what was your home like?"

"Pichu?" Pichu looked at Serena with a surprised tone looking at how sweet Serena was being to her. She wanted a trainer to look after her, but in the end, she seemed to be more than just a trainer, she was more like a… _friend_. Pichu then remembered a very faint memory that dealt with a Pikachu helping her when she was in trouble due to some people in orange suits. "Pi.. Pichu?" Pichu said sadly.

"Huh? Pichu?" Serena asked worryingly as she looked at the pokemon's deep black eyes. She noticed there was some depression in those eyes, it was like Serena had seen someone remembering a tough memory to swallow. "Pichu, I am sorry if I asked something that I shouldn't have." Serena replied while embracing the small mouse.

Pichu then got some confidence and said something to Serena, "Pi pichu pi pichu!" Pichu then released herself from Serena's grip and said in a manly, "Kapi pika pikachu!"

Serena just stared at Pichu with wide eyes, "Did you just talk like if you were a Pikachu?"

Pichu rolled her eyes and made herself look bigger, "Pichu Pi pichu pi!" Pichu explained while finally putting on a small blush in her face as she reenacted something grabbing her hand up from the ground.

Serena then went wide eyed and giggled, "So you met this one Pikachu that you helped and you grew a crush on?" Pichu blushed as she looked at Serena and put her head down with a small smile and slowly nodded. Serena then giggled, "You know, I have a similar experience and I did grow a crush on someone because of that… You know, maybe we are more alike than I thought _Kapi_."

"Pichu?" Pichu asked as she suddenly heard someone call her… _Kapi?_

"It sounds cute doesn't it, do you want to be nicknamed Kapi?" Serena asked with a smile and a small blush while kneeling in front of the small mouse. Pichu looked at the ground and smiled back at Serena with a nice smile. "I'm glad!" Serena replied while Pichu… I mean, Kapi, got on Serena's shoulder as Serena let out a couple of pokeballs. "Braixen, Sylveon come on out!:

"Braixen!"

"Veon!"

"Hey guys, I want you guys to meet Kapi!" Serena said with a smile as Kapi got down from her shoulder to meet the fire fox and the ribbon pokemon.

"Pichu PI!" Kapi replied as she looked at the other pokemon with glee. The other two smiled and replied back with welcoming statements as Serena looked at the interactions and smiled at them.

Serena then saw that the three pokemon had well acquainted themselves and decided to take it a step further, "Ok you three, how about we train a little bit!" The other three pokemon then gave out a small battlecry as Serena smiled and signaled for the three pokemon to start. "Ok, braixen use fire blast! Sylveon use moonblast and hit the middle of the fireblast!" Serena then pointed towards Kapi and exclaimed, "Now use thundershock!"

"Brai...XEN!" Braixen grabbed her wand from her tail and exploded a jet of fire with five prongs in the end towards the air which Sylveon added in a colorful beam of light to it. Suddenly, Kapi looked at the combining moves with huge sprinkling eyes as she collected some electricity in her cheeks.

"PI...CHUUUUUU!" Kapi exclaimed as she tried to shoot the electricity at an accurate shot. Suddenly, the electricity missed the exploding combined moves and started to go rampant. Kapi stopped her attack only so see that she had everyone around her covered in soot… Including herself. "Pichu…" Kapi said sadly as Serena came up to the small electric pokemon.

Kapi was surprised to see Serena pet her in the head and say, "I guess I should have remembered that Pichu's have problems controlling electricity, right Kapi?"

"Pichu," Kapi replied slightly amused and with newly found confidence for what Serena told her.

 **A/N: Ok, so Kapi is the name that I have decided to give the female Pichu (credits to Asurax1). Anyways, with this I am planning to have something interesting happen, but it is probably for after the league, you you gosh darn have to be ready because Kapi will be supporting Ash and** _ **Pikachu**_ **with all she has.**

 **Also, who is the focus of this chapter? Good question, but it will actually be your boy Sceptile. We need a little more development in the tree frog instead of the aquatic frog for once… I just noticed Ash has two frogs in his team… Ok, wait, lemme think: one mouse, three dragons, two frogs… Seems legit, but overpowered at the same time… Three dragons! Ash should be a dragonmaster! JK! xD!**

 **Anyways, I am ready for the league… So ready… I just want to start writing it… But of course I have to finish this short arc first, so enjoy it until the league starts.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 26- Tree skipping to defeat disasters! A reunion of two hearts!

 **Lumiose City:**

Trevor was feeling the strong breeze wave his hair around as he looked over the giant stadium that was built in the Trainer's Village at the side of Lumiose City. The hexagonal beauty glistened in the clear sunlight that the day radiated among the entire heart of Kalos. Trevor was flying on top of his Charizard, the large dragon that had a glistening orange stone beaming on the sun as well. Trevor flew over the trainer's village to find it completely empty. Of course, it would only be allowed to be accessed with after the new Victory Road Challenge that different trainers have to go through. Trevor then redirected his Charizard to fly back down to the Paris-Based city and from there Charizard flew overhead a dancing trainer with his two water type pokemon.

Tierno was in the streets of Lumiose City and was dancing with his Blastoise and Ludicolo as he saw the fire dragon-like pokemon fly overhead. Of course it was a nice to see his friend riding around in such a powerful looking pokemon, but Tierno knew that he would need to be ready for any challenge that came his way so he was practicing his special strategy with his two strong pokemon. He would use this strategy to completely dazzle anyone that got in his way, and he would succeed when battling opposing trainers. Obviously, Tierno was ready.

Meanwhile, on the other side of Lumiose City, Shauna was making herself at home by drinking some tea at a cafe. It was a nice day and she was completely reclined in an outdoor seat with sunglasses watching over the calm and serene river that flowed next to the large city. "Oh Serena," Shauna started. "Your crush surely likes to take his time in getting here."

Shauna then sighed as she heard an explosion behind the cafe she was in. Of course she knew what was going on:

Calem was training with his entire team making sure that everyone was prepared to battle with everything they had. "Ok, Salamence, I want to make sure that if you use dragon rush, you make sure that it is strong enough to break through any head on attacks."

"Roar…" The massive dragon listened intently to Calem.

Calem then turned to his large tank and said, "Chesnaught, make sure that when you use roll out, it is effective enough to go through anything, I want to make sure you can take any hit." The large grass juggernaut pokemon nodded in agreement as Calem then turned to another pokemon, his ace. "So, I think Frogadier would want a rematch wouldn't he?"

"Gallade…" The blade pokemon replied.

Calem then smirked, "Then we will win together with mega evolution, no doubt that Frogadier had probably gotten stronger just to face us." The blade pokemon looked at Calem and smirked from his usually completely neutral expression. "Let's keep training." Calem then put his arms out, "Salamence dragon rush! Gallade dodge it and follow up into a strong short range psycho cut!"

"Roar!" The blue and red dragon exclaimed as he took flight and made a blue aura surround him that was shaped like the face of the dragon itself. At the same time Gallade prepared for the incoming attack patiently. "ROAR!" Salamence came down towards Gallade who was looking at the dragon head on with a good amount of muscle tone. When Salamence was about to hit Gallade, the latter jumped into the sky with swift movements and then put his blades in front of him and made them glow purple. Then in a strong downcut, Gallade came down in a cross like motion with a little bit of pink light from the blades reflecting off of the fighting type's face.

 **With Ash and the others at the campsite:**

"Oooh man, what a great sleep I had last night," Ash said as he got up from his sleeping bag to the smell of Brock's breakfast. Ash noticed that Goodra was still out of his pokeball and when Ash woke up, Goodra also looked at Ash with a nice smile as in thanking Ash for letting him sleep outside with him. Ash looked to see Brock cooking and Clemont working on an invention. Bonnie was playing with her Dedenne which was very amusing for Ash to see. He did feel like the responsibility that Clemont had for Bonnie was something that Ash lacked… _But is that really the case?_

Ash grabbed four pokeballs from his belt and enlarged them and with one swipe up, he threw them up into the sky and a bright flashing light occurred revealing Sceptile, Greninja, Noivern and Charizard all looking very strong and ready for anything. Ash smiled as he walked up to the pokemon with Pikachu and Goodra. "Pika pikachu!" Pikachu shouted as he pointed at the pokemon food that Brock was preparing.

"You guys hungry as well?" Brock asked from his cooking station. The sweet aroma from the breakfast he was making was raining havoc on Ash and his team as well as everyone was in front of Brock sitting in the setup table with forks and knives ready to eat. "Wow Ash, since when did your pokemon learn to use utensils?"

Ash looked to his left and snickered watching his pokemon all eager to eat as well, "Oh man guys, you really are a lot like your trainer, Serena was right at Coumarine City when she told me that!"

"PIKA!"

"NINJA!"

"NOI!"

"GRUAW!"

"GOO!"

All of Ash's pokemon shouted with glee as Brock served them all. All the pokemon and Ash gave Brock very thankful looks as the pokemon doctor and breeder made food that was healthy and very attractive for the taste buds of all of Ash's fighting ready pokemon. The pokemon with a couple bites could not resist themselves and kept eating.

"Hey…" Bonnie said as she neared the table with Clemont who had recently finished and packed away his invention which was probably going to be used in the future. "Where is Serena?"

"Serena went to train this morning," Brock replied the smaller girl. "She wanted to get closer to her newly caught Pichu."

"Pika…" Pikachu's face lost all of its color remembering that Serena's Pichu (Kapi) was a certain pokemon he had met once before. It was not like Pikachu hated her, it is just that Pikachu was afraid that particular Pichu (Kapi) would judge him as a very weak pokemon because of what happened to Pikachu a couple of days after he met Kapi… _When Pikachu lost his whole family_. Pikachu still did not want to have flashbacks to those days when he lived in Santalune Forest since they all lead back to the day that Team Flare took over his habitat. He did not expect his habitat to be taken over since Pikachu thought that team Flare were only attacking the area where he met Kapi. Still, Pikachu was completely surprised when he got attacked and lost all of his family and friends. It was the fear of being judged by Kapi that haunted Pikachu.

"Something wrong Pikachu?" Bonnie asked as she noticed Pikachu go almost completely white at the mention of Kapi. "You have to meet the new Pichu that Serena caught? She is so cute!" Pikachu then looked away and blushed. Of course he found Kapi cute, but he was afraid of coming close to her again. It was as if Bonnie had figured out what Pikachu was feeling because she then taunted the electric mouse. "So, what if she evolves into a Pikachu? Maybe you two could you know…?" Bonnie then snuck a glance at Ash. "Like trainer like pokemon, I wonder if Ash feels the same way that Serena feels about him," Bonnie whispered to Pikachu who cocked his head in confusion. Bonnie then smiled at Pikachu and said, "Nothing!"

"Hey guys, let's train a little bit!" Ash said as he looked at his pokemon who were all stuffing their faces in food. Ash's pokemon all faced their trainer and put hand in the air as they gave a muffled battle cry. "Alright!"

 **With Serena:**

"Alright guys, great job today, we will win the title for sure next time!" Serena replied as she recalled all of her pokemon except Kapi into their pokeballs. Kapi hopped on Serena's shoulder and the honey blonde girl smiled at the electric rodent in her shoulder. Suddenly, Serena felt the ground beneath her shake a little. "Kapi… What is doing this?" Serena asked completely nervous as she looked in the direction of the sound to find tons of Dodrio running at her direction. Serena quickly put herself behind a tree as the stampede passed her. Kapi was holding on to her shoulder with strong paws as the stampede passed. When the squawking and trampling ostrich like pokemon passed. Serena got out of her hiding spot with Kapi and smiled, "You know, when I was little, I used to enjoy watching Rhyhorn stampedes like- AH!"

Serena instantly dove to the ground while protecting Kapi to have a random fire blast pass right above her. "Grrrr…" Serena and Kapi heard from three growling sounds. Serena looked up to find three black hound like pokemon with red heads: Houndour. Serena then noticed that the Houndour charged up a flamethrower that was about to hit her. Serena instantly jumped out of the way with Kapi, but Kapi being confident in herself, she charged up a thundershock and attempted to hit the Houndour.

"Kapi look out!" Serena shouted as she went to grab Kapi that was straining against three dark pulses. The three dark gaia beams easily broke through the tiny electric current. Serena saw that Kapi was in trouble and instantly dove on top of Kapi to protect her. "Kapi I will keep you safe!" Serena shouted with a worried expression as she winced in pain when the three beams collided with her exposed back. Serena then became angry, she was going to stop this once and for all. Serena grabbed a pokeball from her belt and threw it. "Floette use moonblast!"

 **Back with the others:**

"Ok guys, great training," Ash said as he recalled all of his pokemon. He was about to materialize Sceptile back into his pokeball when the tree frog jumped out of the way of the beam. "Huh, Sceptile?" Ash asked the green bipedal pokemon with a branch toothpick.

"Tile…" Sceptile said as he turned to the forest next to the camp site. Brock, Clemont and Bonnie were busy doing some things in the camp site so Ash and Pikachu were able to focus on Sceptile. "Scep…" Sceptile's eyes instantly went wide eyed as he stared into the forest in worry.

" **BOOM!"** Ash saw as smoke started to billow out of the woods.

Ash's mouth instantly opened agape as Pikachu and him turned to Sceptile and nodded. They ran into the forest wanting to check out what was going on. Sceptile instantly took the height advantage and scanned the trees as Pikachu got off of Ash's shoulders and started to lead in front of Ash. Ash kept a close distance with his two pokemon as he also scanned the area for any sort of pokemon attacks that could be flying his way. "Over there!" Ash shouted as he watched Serena, Kapi and Floette battling against three Houndour. Floette sent a moonblast in the direction of the three Houndour which interacted with three dark pulses. The attacks stayed suspended at a stalemate for some time until there was an explosion between the two. What Ash did see that Serena did not was that there was a Houndoom behind the three original Houndour and it had charged up a hyper beam at Serena.

Ash watched clearly as the beam then was launched at Serena and Kapi. "SERENA!" Ash shouted. Serena could barely process the moment when he did it, but he grabbed Serena by the waist and took her with him out of the way of the hyper beam while twirling her **(Like how Alain saved Mairin once)**.

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he noticed how Kapi was not protected when Ash took on Serena so he decided to dive in after Kapi. Pikachu went in for the dive and grabbed the smaller electric rodent in his arms. Then he dove by where Ash was while rolling with Kapi. Once both mice stopped rolling, Kapi got locked in Pikachu's eyes as Pikachu ended up on top of Kapi.

"Pika pika…" Kapi magically said in Pikachu language while looking at Pikachu's big shiny eyes. Pikachu was afraid that this might have happened, but it was obvious that he needed to save Kapi.

"Pika... " Pikachu said as he got up from Kapi and helped her up.

"Ash…" Serena replied as she looked at who saved her. Serena then noticed that Ash was on top of her and slightly blushed, but Ash quickly got up from her and looked at the Houndour and the lone Houndoom. Floette had managed to reach Serena's side as she sat up and Serena thanked the flower pokemon and recalled her.

"Are you ok Serena?" Ash asked as he watched Pikachu climb up to his shoulder and Kapi walk up to Serena and get on her shoulder… Kapi was curious as to why Pikachu got on top of Ash's shoulder though. Serena slowly nodded to Ash's question and Ash used his hand to help up Serena who was sitting in the ground with some soot on her back, but other than that she was fine.

"Grrrrr… Doom!" Houndoom growled and flinched at his opponent. Sceptile stood between the fire predators and the trainers with their pokemon in a defensive stance. Sceptile kept a relaxed posture with good muscle tone as he made sure that the Houndoom did not take one step. Any time the dogs would attempt to take a step, Sceptile would also move his leg slightly to try and intimidate the pokemon.

Houndoom then looked like he had enough with waiting for Sceptile to attack so he ordered himself and the other Houndour to shoot a fire blast. The four pokemon charged and fired a beam of fire with five prongs at the tree frog that stood there completely relaxed as he saw the move come in. When the fire blast was within range, Sceptile made the lateral portion of his arms glow green and he put them in front of him completely slicing through the flamethrower with leaf blade. When the fire was over, Sceptile retreated his green blades and then made green scaly claws with his hands and charged the four pokemon with complete determination.

Ash and Serena along with Pikachu and Kapi watched in complete awe as Sceptile charged in on the three Houndour. The three dogs took out purple claws that had a black scheme to represent a shadow and made them collide with the green claws that Sceptile had created. Sceptile then back flipped and dodged the hit of one of the free paws of one of the Houndour and retreated his claws to form again a leaf blade. This time, he charged and he made sure that the pokemon would not get any sort of advantage over him, so with quick and swift movements, Sceptile made himself able to attack continuously the Houndour. He finally got a slash on one Houndour and then slashed the second Houndour. Both Houndour fell back in exhaustion and then there was one left.

"Serena, let's go see what is the meaning of this, Sceptile can take them," Ash whispered.

"Right," Serena replied as the two got up from their hiding spot and got out of the way with their electric rodents of the bipedal green frog with a toothpick on his mouth.

"Scep… TILE!" Sceptile shouted as he closed the gap with leaf blade with the last Houndour. This one fired off a flamethrower, but Sceptile easily slashed it as he got closer to the hound pokemon. As soon as the Houndour was in range, Sceptile took and easy swing and took down the Houndour…

All now that was left was the lead Houndoom who sent a chilling howl into the air and made a powerup sign with his howling move.

"Sceptile…" Sceptile warned as he kept his green blades in a defensive position.

"Grrrrrr…." Houndoom roared back at Sceptile and made a shadow claw with both of his paws. "Hound.. DOOM!" Houndoom shouted as he leaped into the air and charged Sceptile with his purple claw.

Sceptile did not look dazed and with a relaxed look on his face, he countered the shadow claw with his leaf blade. The sparks that flew out of the two pokemon moves was evidence that it was a large stalemate in power, but there was obviously one that was more calm and collected. "Scep… TILE!" Sceptile shouted as he exposed the tree on his back to make a wind with razor sharp leafs rushing towards Houndoom. Houndoom though, he did not hesitate and threw out a fire blast that interacted with the grass move. Suddenly, Sceptile made his hands glow dragon claws as he suspended his leaf storm. When he did that, Sceptile rushed out towards the fire blast's five prongs and went right through it at chilingspeed. After getting close proximity to the Houndoom, Sceptile slashed the Houndoom critically on its side.

Sceptile landed behind Houndoom with the toothpick on his mouth and a cool pose as an explosion enveloped Houndoom. Sceptile smirked as he saw how Houndoom fell to the ground unable to continue. Sceptile then engraved his fist into the ground and from the forest ground, a large plant surged out that grabbed the three Houndour and the Houndoom that were exhausted in the ground and suspended them in the air.

Sceptile took one last look at the battle he had just won and decided to find the others and stop the agitation of these pokemon, so he jumped into the trees and began to hop from one tree to another.

 **With Ash and Serena:**

"Look," Ash pointed from the hiding place of the two trainers. Ash was motioning to a machine that was being ran over by team flare grunts. One was a woman with green hair and special goggles. She had next to her a Bisharp and she was fiddling around with the controls and causing green streaks from the trees to surge to a container next to the machine… Something Ash did not like as he gripped his scarf. "I should have known they would be going after the cells..."

"Pika…" Pikachu agreed with his trainer.

"Pichu!" Serena, Pikachu and Ash watched in shock as Kapi shouted as she saw how a surge of confidence went through her. "PI… CHUUUUUUUU!" Kapi shouted while blowing the cover of our heroes and attempting to connect a thundershock. The thundershock hit the Bisharp, but from the looks of it, it barely made a scratch. "Pichu…" The Bisharp turned to his trainer and nodded. Suddenly, Bisharp made his hands glow white blades and made a cross with them: Guillotine.

Ash's eyes widened as he saw this. Serena noticed quickly and got in front of Kapi in complete defence of the smaller pokemon. Ash though, he knew that Bisharp's attack would be fatal, "Pikachu counter it with iron tail!"

"Pika pika pika pika pika… CHU PI!" Pikachu shouted as he landed on the Bisharps white blades with his white glowing tail. The collision included a good amount of sparks flying out by both sides, but eventually, both pokemon retreated. Pikachu and Ash then stood in front of Serena.

"Stop taking those cells team Flare!" Ash shouted as he stared down the woman with green hair and the grunts who had no pokemon next to them, that must have been the Houndour and the Houndoom. Pikachu began to gather electricity next to Ash as he stared down Bisharp as well.

"Why should I?" The lady in green replied while touching her goggles. "The last thing I need is for you to get in the way of things!"

"Oh yea, let me get involved too! Braixen, let's go!" Serena shouted as she threw a pokeball that shaped itself into Braixen from a bright flashing light. "Use flamethrower!" Braixen pulled out her wand and expelled a jet of flames towards the Bisharp. Kapi watched in awe as her trainer used a great combination of moves.

The woman did not budge though, while putting her hand out she commanded, "Use focus blast!"

"Bi… SHARP!" Bisharp shouted as he made an orb within his hands and expelled it towards the incoming jet of fire. When the moves collided there was a decently sized explosion and then focus blast powered through because it was the stronger move.

Ash made quick calculations as he put his hand to the side, "Quick Pikachu, jump in the air at sixty degrees and you should come on top of the focus blast and use iron tail to slam it down!" Pikachu jumped into the air at the exact angle that Ash said and then made his tail glow white, with that the electric mouse hit down the focus blast into the ground and created a decently sized explosion.

"Guillotine!" The woman cried out while Ash gritted his teeth watching the Bisharp make his cross shaped blades glow white again. About to call for another iron tail, Ash was surprised to see a green blur hit the Bisharp by the side and make it tumble to the ground in front of the Team Flare admin. "What?!"

"Tile…" Sceptile said as he kept his green blades out as a warning and looking at Bisharp with great caution.

"Bi…" Bisharp grunted as he looked at Sceptile.

"Use thunder wave!" the team flare admin shouted completely making Sceptile and Ash look wide eyed at the scenario.

Bisharp took out his hand and made a couple yellow waves go towards Sceptile, but just as they were about to hit the tree frog, two yellow figures jumped in front of the attack and took in all of the electricity. "Pikachu!/Kapi!" Ash and Serena shouted in unison as they both watched their electric mouses jump in to take the electric paralysing move. Pikachu and Kapi both glowed yellow when the move hit them and since they are both electric the move did no damage. Both Pikachu and Kapi then landed in front of Sceptile with a large amounts of electricity stored in their cheeks.

"Pikachu…" Pikachu grunted attempting to keep all of the electricity in.

"Pi… CHUUUUUU!" Kapi was extremely impatient as she shot the supercharged electricity as a thundershock.

"Pikachu! Help her maintain control over her electricity! Redirect the thundershock with thunder!" Ash exclaimed as he put a fist out.

"Boost their power Braixen use flamethrower!" Serena commanded while raising her arm.

Braixen unleashed her wand as Pikachu took all of the electricity he stored from the thunderwave and shot it at the thundershock. The two electric beams combined and formed a larger beam while Braixen shot her jet of fire at the beam of electricity and also combined to amplify the power. Suddenly, the beam missed the Bisharp and hit the control panel the team flare admin was working on and the panel instantly exploded.

"What?!" The green haired Flare admin shouted in disbelief as she turned to her Bisharp. "Focus blast now!" Bisharp made with his hands a orange orb and shot it in the direction of our heroes and their pokemon, but Ash had different plans.

"Sceptile counter it with dragon claw!" Ash retaliated.

"Scep… TILE!" Sceptile shouted as he went head on towards the orange orb while summoning green claws in his hands and taking on the hit straight on causing small explosion with smoke. Sceptile then went through the other side of the smoke and slammed into the Bisharp with dragon claw instantly rendering Bisharp to the ground panting in exhaustion.

"Bisharp guillotine come on!" The team Flare admin exclaimed. Bisharp did not move though and stayed down completely exhausted. Sceptile retreated his green claws and looked at Bisharp in the ground while barely able to stand up. "Bisharp, Xerosic needs us to do this for Lysandre!"

Ash and Serena watched as Sceptile slowly walked up to Bisharp. Bisharp clearly in no state to battle was being completely overpowered. Sceptile then did something that surprised everyone and stuck out a webbed hand so that Bisharp could stand up with him. "Sharp…" Bisharp said resigned.

"Scep Sceptile," Sceptile called out as he grabbed the hand of the steel and dark type and helped him up.

"Pika…" Pikachu said with awe watching the actions of Sceptile. Kapi was also wide eyed as she ran up to her trainer.

"Sceptile…" Ash whispered to himself as he saw the kindness in Sceptile. Bisharp then turned to his trainer and smirked. Frustrated with her pokemon, the green haired woman recalled Bisharp to his pokeball.

The other grunts watched her look down shadowing her eyes. She then looked up and said, "Let's go get the Houndour and Houndoom back and leave… We won't win…"

"A-As you wish," the grunts replied as team Flare moved out of the area.

"Thanks Braixen, return," Serena said as Braixen got absorbed into her pokeball. "Ash, I think it is time we headed back to the others."

Ash then turned to Serena who had Kapi on her shoulders and said, "Yea, good idea." Ash then turned to Sceptile who had come up next to Ash while slumping next to a tree with a lowered gaze to add a cool look. Ash then looked at Sceptile and smiled, "You are so bada$$ Sceptile…"

"Tile," the grass type smirked and turned his gaze to Ash.

Ash nodded and pulled out Sceptile's pokeball to return the bipedal frog. Ash then turned to Serena as Pikachu got on his shoulder and said, "I agree, the others are probably worried."

Pikachu and Kapi then got out of their trainer's shoulders and lead the way back. "Pichu Pichu pi?" Kapi asked with curiosity.

Pikachu rubbed the back of his head and replied with, "Pika pikachu!"

Serena and Ash smiled from behind watching the mouses interact. Serena then made a realization… 'So Kapi's Pikachu crush was Ash's Pikachu? They met before, huh? _Like trainer like pokemon_ …'

 **A/N: How was that? Was Sceptile awesome? I based off Sceptile to use his leaf blades like a Jedi and his quick reactions are awesome… Want to know who I really based him off of? Kit Fisto: Did you notice Sceptile taking on more than one enemy at a time easily, that is Fisto's duel style: Advantageous in one vs two or more people.**

 **Anyways, the league is closer, like a couple chapters… Be hype!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **Ninjafang1331: Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it!**

 **Rayquaza'sDaBoss: Haha, correction, you can't wait for the next part of the adventure ;)! Glad you like it, thanks for reviewing!**

 **ArmorshippingFan: Yup, Goodra has a new move, and on Serena we will learn about this a little later. Glad you enjoyed!**

 **Guest 1: Will keep it up! Glad you enjoyed, thanks for reviewing!**

 **Thank you guys for over 100 followers and 20k+ views! You guys are awesome!**


	27. Chapter 27

**Lumiose City:**

Calem was walking around the streets of the city. Nothing was out of the ordinary and the day was calm. One could see the bright sky and the sun was beaming down on everyone. Calem then turned around and fiddled with his belt. Yup, all six pokemon were there, the six pokemon he was going to enter the league with. It was already hard to make his team this powerful and he was going to make sure that he made it as far as he could.

Calem shifted his walking speed to a slower one as he walked into the pokemon center and walked up to the counter where Nurse Joy was standing with a beaming smile that was so contagious that Calem smiled himself.

"Nurse Joy, can you take care of my team for me?" Calem asked as he took out all six pokeballs from his belt and put them on a rack.

Nurse Joy took the rack with the pokeballs and smiled, "Yes I may, they will be right back out ready for battling in no time! Just make sure that you stand by!" Nurse Joy then took the rack behind the door to the clinic in which Calem had never been.

Calem then turned around and started to leave, but did not notice the teenager that was talking in the video phone as he passed.

 **Same Pokemon Center, just different third person POV:**

"Hunter, YOU CAUGHT A WHAT!?" A strong voice almost echoed through the pokemon center as Hunter was trying to calm down the guy that was in the other side of the call. The teenager Hunter was speaking to had pale skin and dark blue eyes that had black spiky hair with a dark blue outline. His clothes included a black pair of pants and a black undershirt. Finally, the teenager also had a black jacket with dark blue streams that surrounded made up the edges of the jacket. Next to him, there was a sweat dropping Jolteon trying to not startle his trainer any more than he already is. Also next to him, a shiny blue Decidueye face winged looking at how his trainer was acting.

"Shhhhh…" Hunter replied with a whispering voice and covering his lips with one finger. "Someone could hear us…" Hunter inferred this as another teenager with black hair that had just given Nurse Joy his pokeballs walked behind Hunter and the call. "Dude, I had to call Leaf to come over so that she could see it as well."

"Dang…" The other boy said as he touched his chin. "Dude, you know that this is probably one your best chances to win the whole thing right?"

Hunter smirked and said, "Watch me." Then Hunter looked down and said, "If I am going down though, it will be a good battle this time and not another f***ing slaughter like last time!"

The other boy smiled and looked at Hunter, "Dude, you can always challenge the Tunod league and become champion, after that you defeat the Johto league, and then finally, after that you can challenge me at the soul stadium… Just like I did to Soul."

Hunter smiled at his friend, "Yea, I know, after you beat Soul himself and he appointed you to be his successor after he retired…" Hunter said sarcastically knowing the story. Hunter then clenched his fists and looked at the boy with determined eyes. "But I am still wanting to challenge you... but I want to win a league conference before that! I want to match your power!"

The other teenager smiled, "I know you do want to match me, but that doesn't mean you can't already… You have become stronger, so I am expecting an amazing performance from you at the Kalos league!" the boy replied as he gave a thumbs up.

"Jol Jolteon!" The Jolteon exclaimed agreeing with his trainer.

"Cidueye!" The blue hooded archer owl next to Night said while showing off a pose.

Hunter sighed, "Thanks _Night_ …" Hunter then made himself look up at the eyes of the determined trainer apparently called Night. "Just one thing though…" Night cocked an eyebrow watching his friend wanting to ask something. "Would you, come down to Kalos? I have wanted to battle alongside you for a long time now… And the victory road is exactly where we can do this!"

Night then smirked, "You know, I am free for some time in the future, why don't I go down to Lumiose and cheer you on?" Night then witnessed Hunter's eyes look up in complete awe and happiness. "Hehe, I can tease you some more about Leaf there too!" Hunter instantly went all red and raised up a pokeball to the screen trying to intimidate Night. "Don't worry, I will try to make you look good for her, I know about your feelings bro, I am your friend." Night said as he crossed his arms.

Hunter then smiled and said, "Ok dude, see you there!"

"See ya there bro!" Night replied as he disconnected the call to leave Hunter staring at a blank screen.

 **A/N: So Night is in the picture now. Notice how I made him champion of the Soul Stadium. This is Pokemon Glazed stuff so you guys can probably know that Pokemon glazed is one of my favorite pokemon ROM hacks ever. I still even kept the tradition of a blue shiny pokemon for the person that is champion: Shiny Decidueye. That is probably going to be what my OC will be most famous for, his Decidueye and his Jolteon. Anyways, Night will be going to the league to see how Hunter does on there, and does this mean we will have a Pikachu vs Jolteon already… I can tell you for sure that Night is not in the league so there is no need to worry about that anyways.**

 **But what did Hunter mean by: "battle alongside" Night?**

 **Wait, does this mean that Ash will need to battle with someone as well? I wonder who…**

 **Anyways, just a little bit of foreshadowing I wanted you guys to know about before the league so that you guys can start making your own theories as to what will happen.**

So last chapter we actually focused a little bit on Sceptile. The green frog should now be called "Kit Fisto"... JK lol! Sceptile is just so awesome like that.

 **Anyways, this chapter is mostly a filler, but maybe it will have some interesting parts to it, who knows?**

 **Also, not long until we begin the actual challenge of the fic! How will Ash be able to do against all of his competition? We will have to find out!**

 **By the way, I have so much planned out for the league so it will be a cool thing to watch out for the things that will make the Lumiose Conference a lot more interesting than in other fics that have had a tournament. Yes, I have learned so much from** _ **The Fallen Trainer**_ **and I plan to use all of the stuff that I learned to make this so cool.**

 **Anyways, I do want to put some emphasis on the things that will go down this episode between the gang and a lot of the competition that will happen today as well.**

 **Enjoy the chapter!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 27- Squishy the core… Lumiose conference registration begins!

 **Lumiose City:**

"Did you register for the league yet?" This was a voice that was heard by someone with raven hair hiding in an alleyway of Lumiose City. It was a dark place that Ashura could easily hide in, and it was a great way for Ashura to also eavesdrop on all of the trainers that were coming outside of the pokemon center. It was open registration for the Kalos League that had just been announced to be done early by the champion through the television. This was the time that Ashura was waiting for as he wanted to register, but he could not figure out a way to do it so that Ash would not know that he was entering the league.

"Yea, I just did," Another voice, this time it was feminine. Ashura saw as the voices slowly lost volume meaning that they were leaving the area. Ashura knew that he had to do this in secret so he kneeled down and slid his backpack over his shoulder to be able to see the inside contents of his bag. Inside, he saw a cloak that he thought about using. Ashura was conflicted about using a cloak throughout the league as he had once done it in Kanto and from that he was able to sweep easily. Still, the fact that he had to keep the cloak in order to defeat Lance left Ashura conflicted as to how he was going to do it. In the end, he knew that he needed to keep himself secret. With that, Ashura slid on the cloak and walked out of the shadows and into the sunlight of Kalos and from there, in front of the pokemon center.

Looking around, Ashura saw that the coast was clear, so he turned to the sliding doors of the pokemon center which conveniently opened up to reveal him to the inside of the healing haven for pokemon.

Ashura walked in and instantly noticed that the pokemon center was completely empty except for Nurse Joy who was in the counter taking care of some business with the computer. Ashura saw that it was his big chance so he walked up to Nurse Joy with a swift maneuver and finished walking in front of Nurse Joy.

Nurse Joy looked up from what she was doing to see Ashura waiting for her there, "My apologies sir, how may I help you?" Nurse Joy asked in a polite tone.

Ashura reached into his bag and pulled out a badge case with all eight glistening badges and his pokedex and simply said, "I have come to register for the league."

"Absolutely sir, right away," Nurse Joy said with a bow as she took the badge case and the pokedex of Ashura and put it in front of the computer. She took a close look at the badges and made sure that there was eight, and sure enough, eight badges were glistening in the light that the pokemon center was giving off. Nurse Joy then returned Ashura his badge case and scanned the pokedex in her computer...

When the name of the trainer came up in the computer monitor, Nurse Joy went wide eyed, "R-Re-"

Ashura saw what Nurse Joy was about to say and instantly reached over to her and put a hand over her mouth while whispering in her ear while also making sure no one was looking or around to witness this, "Don't you dare say that name…"

Nurse Joy struggled a little more in Ashura's grip and Ashura let go of the nurse. Nurse Joy was shaking in fear as she saw that Ashura had let her go. Nurse Joy looked back at the computer and changed some things to hopefully cover her up and in the end she returned Ashura his pokedex. Ashura took the pokedex from the shaking Nurse Joy as he began to turn away and walk out of the door. "Congratulations, you have been registered for the league… _Satoshi_."

Ashura looked back at Nurse Joy and removed his cloak to fully expose his face to her. Ashura then nodded and said, "Sorry about that, I am just not ready for people to know my first name…" Ashura then looked back at the sliding door and clenched his fists. "Ever since Charizard…" Ashura then left Nurse Joy with her mouth agape. "Whatever… Satoshi is a good name, thanks for letting me be anonymous." Ashura then slipped the cloak back over his head completely concealing his face and he began to walk out of the pokemon center towards the sliding doors.

The sliding doors opened to let Ashura out, and Ashura walked through it as a gust of wind caused his cloak from behind to arch up and show off Ashura's real attire to Nurse Joy. The wind then calmed down and the cloak returned to concealing Ashura as he walked through the doors. The doors then closed slowly thus slowly making Ashura's figure be blocked by the doors.

The doors then slammed shut and Nurse Joy was left with a trembling expression by herself in the clinic.

 **With the gang walking towards Lumiose City:**

The gang was walking through the path with the intention of Ash taking on the league with everything he had. According to Serena, the group was not far from Lumiose City, in fact, she stated that they would reach the heart of Kalos by noon if they kept up the pace. The path was nice and quiet though and the trees kept waving slightly along Ash's blue scarf to the breeze that was going through our heroes. Also, the path was getting a lot more visible which indicated that Lumiose City was a lot closer than anybody thought.

"So Ash, who are you expecting to battle at the league?" Brock asked as he and Ash led the group of five. Serena and Bonnie were not that far behind, but they were talking mostly girl stuff, or stuff that made Serena go all red. The last person was Clemont, who was trying his best not to die as he tried to keep up with the group. Brock and Ash were talking strategy for the league and it was obvious that Ash was very restless about it since Lumiose City was not too far away at this point.

Ash listened to Brock's question and put on a careful look, "The strongest!" Ash said as he put a fist in the air along with Pikachu. Brock just face palmed and Ash figured he probably wanted a legitimate answer since Ash had just given away the most obvious fact that he was excited. "Ok, maybe I want to rematch Calem… Last time I battled him, Greninja, who was a Frogadier back then, lost to his Gallade… I want Greninja to have his rematch and defeat that Gallade!"

Brock then gave Ash a quizzical look and asked, "What about your other pokemon, do you think that they would like a rematch against someone?"

Ash then looked and thought through his pokemon and then muttered something that Brock still heard, "Damian…."

"Damian?" Brock asked unaware of what was going on, but then he remembered something, "Wait, that guy that insulted you before you challenged Wulfric the first time?"

Ash looked down and clenched his fists, "Yea, that jag…"

Serena then stepped near Brock and Ash and said, "You see, the thing is that Ash and Damian never got along. Damian always put Ash down, and in the last battle Ash and Damian had… It was before we reached Anistar City."

"What happened?" Bonnie asked trying to catch up to the three.

"Wait! I want to listen!" Clemont exclaimed as he wheezed over to the group.

Ash sighed and simply said, "Yea, let me tell you guys the story, let's just sit down." Ash said as the group began to stop walking to then sit down on a tree stump. They all turned to Ash as he tried to keep his composure, this was a rough subject for his pokemon and he knew it. "Well… I met Damian when I met Charizard, he abandoned Charizard and left him, who was then a Charmander, to die in the rain."

"No way!" Bonnie exclaimed in agitation.

"Well… it happened, it turns out that Damian thought he was weak, so he abandoned it on some rock near Lumiose and when Serena and I saved Charmander, I offered it the chance to come alongside me… and he did," Ash explained thinking back to after he won his first gym badge.

"It disgusts me that someone would use such an illogical method of treating a pokemon," Cleaning said seriously as he adjusted the glare on his glasses.

Brock then put a hand over Ash's shoulder, "It is alright, you took care of him and now he is one of your strongest."

"You see…" Serena started while she looked at the distressed Ash. "Damian keeps verbally attacking Ash's pokemon all the time… to the point that Ash's pokemon completely lose it…"

"Pika…" Pikachu hung his head agreeing with Serena. He had also been called out by Damian at times.

"Wait, are you serious?!" Brock asked.

Ash slowly nodded and proceeded with his story, "It was before I took on the Anistar gym…"

 **Flashback:**

" _That Noivern of yours is pathetic," Damian smirked as he put his hand out. "Zweilous use dragon pulse!"_

" _Zwei… LOUS!" the double headed dragon shouted as he shot a dragon shaped beam at the sound wave dragon. Noivern took the hit straight on, but stayed flying in a large explosion. Noivern then fell to the ground covered in smoke as his wings were extremely heated up._

" _Noivern!" Ash shouted as he saw Noivern take the attack and fall down to the ground motionless._

" _Noivern is unable to battle, Zweilous wins!" The ref, who had brown spiky hair and hazel eyes exclaimed as he raised his flag towards Zweilous. The ref was also dressed in normal black and white official clothes on this six on six battle where Zweilous had just swept all of Ash's team except one pokemon. Ash was about to recall Noivern when Noivern slowly got back up._

" _NOIVERN!" Noivern shouted in anger and with red eyes as he made himself glow gold and charge the Zweilous._

 _The ref looked at Ash with serious eyes and said, "Call off the attack… NOW!" Ash gritted his teeth and looked at the ref with panic. What could he do. "Just get your undisciplined Noivern out of battle before I disqualify you!" Ash hated the fact the ref was being unsympathetic about the situation, but what would Ash do? Noivern was on a mind of his own!_

" _Noivern no!" Ash shouted in panic as he watched the anger consumed pokemon attempt to attack the Zweilous under critical condition. "Noivern you are too hurt! Cut… it… OUT!"_

" _Oh wow, so badly trained," Damian said with crossed arms. "Just use another dragon pulse at that helpless flying rat." Zweilous once again launched his dragon shaped multicolored beam at Noivern and when the hit collided, Noivern fell to the ground completely helpless and unconscious._

" _NOIVERN!" Ash shouted with extreme panic as he ran to the field and rushed the fallen pokemon. Ash reached Noivern and saw that his wings had severe wounds from the battle and from attempting to rush Zweilous. "Noivern hang in there."_

 _Serena watched in panic next to the field while grabbing her ribbon with extreme worry for Ash. Ash used his scarf to stop some of the bleeding that Noivern was having because of the attack._

" _Dragon pulse on Ash, Zweilous!" Damian said with an amused look on his face. Zweilous slowly began to make the blue and red beam charge up in his head._

 _The ref was just watching… with an amused smile on his face as well._

 _Serena instantly went wide eyed as she saw the command and turned to the ref, "AREN'T YOU GOING TO STOP THE ATTACK!?" The ref simply ignored her and Serena watched in complete horror as the dragon pulse began to streak it's way towards Ash and the unconscious Noivern. "ASH! NOIVERN!" Serena shouted as she found herself running towards Ash in increasing worry. She would not let the dragon pulse hit Ash, not over her dead body._

 _On Ash's belt, one pokeball was shaking with all of its might. Ash saw the incoming beam and put his body over Noivern to protect the sound wave dragon. The pokeball shaking on Ash's belt then emerged and shot open a Chameleon which then put himself between the two and used a strong pair of green scaly claws. The dragon claw took on the dragon shaped beam and Chameleon stood there growling at Damian and Zweilous with two claws pointed at Damian and Zweilous in a threatening manner._

" _Meleon…" Chameleon warned as Damian put on a smirk on his face._

 _Serena saw this and narrowed her eyes at Damian. Serena had made it near Ash and was helping the raven haired trainer and the sound wave dragon get up… When she lost all control to what the ref had to say._

" _Due to having used an illegal move! Ash Ketchum us disqualified from the battle meaning that Damian wins!" the ref shouted with a smile._

" _ILLEGAL MOVE?! DID YOU SEE WHAT DAMIAN JUST DID?!" Serena shouted over to the ref who just ignored her. Serena walked in front of the ref as Ash and Noivern began to limp over to Serena because Noivern was so injured, he could barely walk._

" _Serena, let's get Noivern to the pokemon center quickly," Ash said urgently as Pikachu and Chameleon got in front of Ash to help Noivern get back up._

" _It's a shame…" everyone turned their attention to Damian who had just said that remark. "That Chameleon was what I was looking to defeat today… oh well…" Damian replied as he recalled his Zweilous._

" _You got that right Dam- OOF!" The ref got the living daylights knocked out of him as Serena left towards where Ash was._

" _That is what you get, idiot…" Serena replied as she went to Ash and helped the pokemon grab Noivern._

 _The ref stood there looking at the figures walk out of the room and Damian walked up to him. The ref had just been left with a painful hand mark on his left cheek._

 **End Flashback:**

"Moral of the story is, the only thing that got defeated on Damian's side was the slap that Serena gave the ref after the battle," Ash said with a slight laugh but then turned to a serious look. "But yea, my team got trashed except Charizard, who did not even get to battle… and I was unable to even defeat a pokemon on Damian's side…"

"That must have really hurt," Brock replied with a sad expression. "And you said you wanted to battle him in the league? I think you two should just stay away from each other at this point," Brock remarked.

"It was devastating for Ash too, Calem would have stuck up to him, but he was already challenging the Anistar gym with Shauna… and well, Tierno and Trevor were already working for their last badge… I tried what I could, but I don't think I really helped that much…" Serena replied with a small frown.

Serena then felt a small hand around her shoulder, "Serena, that slap was the best thing I could have seen at that point to help me cope with the loss," Ash replied with a smile. "And yes, next time I will win!"

"Oh Ash…" Serena replied with a small smile as the group began to get back up and begin to walk towards Lumiose City.

 **A little later:**

The group continued to walk until they reached a small open clearing where the group stopped walking to have a little time to drink some water. Ash and Pikachu decided to have a little race as Clemont decided to collapse on the ground next to the path in order to catch his breath. Serena noticed some flowers near where the group was on some bushes. They looked like blossoming cherry blossoms and Serena went up to them and smelled them. Brock read up a little bit on the history of Lumiose City, he was curious as to what kind of landmarks he could find…

"Oh my gosh!" A girly scream got the attention of everyone. "It is so CUTE!"

Ash was confused as to what was going on, so he and Pikachu walked over to where the shrieking Bonnie was. Serena, who was the closest to Bonnie got there first and stood looking with her mouth agape at what Bonnie was referring to. Brock and Clemont were a little slower as they came up behind Ash while also feeling a little curious as to why Bonnie was shouting.

One look at the ground and there was a small green blobby shaped pokemon on the ground that had one eye and white coloration coming off into a small circle next to it. There was also a red core in the middle of the small pokemon that was shaped like a hexagon. "What is that?" Clemont asked looking at the blob.

"I think… a pokemon?" Serena inferred.

"It is like that thing Ash and I encountered a while back with that fat dude," Brock said while holding his chin.

"Pi pikachu…" Pikachu sweatdropped as he heard Brock's description of Xerosic.

"That's…" Ash started as everyone turned to him. "That's a Zygarde core." Ash then looked at the Zygarde core and said. "It looks like it can be captured, let's bring it with us then for now, I don't think it will mind… Bonnie?" Ash turned to the small girl in front of him. "Can I trust you to look after it?"

Bonnie looked at Ash with glistening eyes and replied, "Yes Ash!" Bonnie then went over to Zygarde and said, "Hey, I am going to call you Squishy!" The core made small sounds at Bonnie indicating that it was fine with it, and with that Bonnie took the blob and put it in her bag alongside Dedenne. Bonnie then turned to the others and said, "Ready to keep going guys?"

"Ready!" Serena replied as she grabbed her hat and began leading the group towards Lumiose City. "We are almost there!"

Ash looked at Pikachu and smiled while pumping his fist, "Pikachu… WE ARE ALMOST THERE!"

"Pi Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted while running off ahead.

"Can we not run?!" Clemont asked as he felt a strong pair of arms pick him up being Brock.

"Alright, I will be your legs," Brock replied running ahead of Ash. Bonnie followed with her great speed as she attempted to catch up to Pikachu, Bonnie and Brock who was giving Clemont a piggy back ride.

"No way, Brock that looks fun!" Ash then began to run behind the honey blonde girl in front of her who was distracted while looking at her tablet with a map showing the way to Lumiose City. "Serena you are playing this game with _me_!"

Serena instantly looked up confused, "What ga-" Serena instantly felt a pair of arms swoop her off the ground and begin to carry her bridal style. "Ash, oh my goodness!" Serena shouted as her face went all red.

"We are winning this game, Serena!" Ash shouted completely unaware that Serena had smoke coming out of her ears with pleasure.

'Girls are always crazy for male celebrities, but for some reason I have always been thinking of Ash as one… Oh my gosh, he is bridaling me right now!' Serena thought with pink cheeks until she noticed a smirking Bonnie…

'BONNIE!' Serena mentally cursed herself.

 **A/N: So close! I am so hype for it all to begin!**

 **Noivern has been shown to have had a bad time against Damian, also Charizard, let's see how this plays out because I can smell trouble already happening.**

 **Also guys, I am so ready to write the league battles! Beat thing is… No one week breaks Woo Hoo! I can write these all I want.**

 **Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this episode as it sets the stage for the future.**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys… Next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **ArmoshippingFan: Good theories, see how this evolves in the future ;). Thanks for reviewing!**

 **Guest1: No problem! I will make sure to keep it up! Thanks for the review!**


	28. Chapter 28

**On the route to Lumiose City:**

'Oh my gosh… he carried me bridal style!' Serena thought to herself as she gripped her blue ribbon. At the same time, her face was very red and there was steam coming out of her eyes. A small ghost was coming out of Serena's mouth as she walked, and the ghost was feeling very pleasurable… This probably means that Serena feels like she died and went to heaven, but she was walking with her own two legs. Yes, she could not believe it either. Under her feet she was using the force of friction to propulse herself through the path. Next to her was Bonnie how was skipping around and Clemont was still trying to catch up, but he was doing a little better. Brock was reading up on some of the landmarks of Lumiose City, like he was doing throughout the traveling, and Ash… Well, he was talking with Pikachu about how to win the league and his plan.

Serena knew that Ash's six pokemon probably had to be some of the strongest pokemon that anyone had ever seen, but it still made her very nervous as to how Ash would perform. Would he win? Would the feelings he held inside somehow get to him? Serena shook her head, there was no way that Ash would easily give up, just no way as long as he had his pokemon next to him.

Bonnie was skipping along with her new friend names Squishy. Ash was still keeping a close eye on the Zygarde core because he knew that if it fell to the wrong hands, then destruction would occur, and that is not his plan. At the same time, Bonnie was still happy that she managed to make a new friend, it was obvious to her that making friends with pokemon would be something she would want to do before she set out on her own journey.

Clemont was keeping to himself his thoughts. Mostly on how the stadium would be like when he next saw it. He designed the Kalos League conference stadium, but he did not expect it to be built while he was out on a journey with his sister searching for ways to become stronger. For Clemont though, it was time for him to head back to Lumiose and check on the city that calls him the "Boy Genius". Still, Clemont was very hyped to see the Lumiose conference stadium in person. In a way, it was his baby, his best invention, his biggest break yet. Clemont could not feel anymore proud of himself than he already felt.

Brock was studying to himself the Lumiose landmarks. Predominantly, the fact that Prism Tower was known as a famous place for couples to have their dates. Brock then looked in front of him at a certain raven haired trainer who talked with his partner, and then Brock shifted his gaze over to the honey blonde female that was walking next to Bonnie. This certain girl was occasionally stealing glances at Ash to make things less obvious which made Brock smile and shake his head. 'Someday he will understand…' Brock thought to himself.

Ash was leading the gang with his best friend, "Pikachu, when the league starts, let's make sure that we have Charizard be our go to power house, and Greninja cleans up. At the same time, why don't we have you be my main hard hitter, I know you can do so much."

"Pika?" The mouse asked as he looked over at Ash with a confused face.

"What I mean is that you have the potential of taking down any opponent," Ash said as he smirked and looked ahead. "I have a feeling you could be able to defeat a Tyranitar and a Metagross in a row. Maybe even add in a Dragonite if you get on his back and fire off a strong thunderbolt that they can't take you out of."

"Pika…" Pikachu replied while sweat dropping. Pikachu obviously was nervous for the league, but it was these nerves that fueled the fact that he wanted to make his trainer proud. In the end, Pikachu did not know if he even had it in him to take down two pseudo legendaries like that, much less take down a large dragon with a strong thunderbolt. Of course, Pikachu still wanted to prove himself so he accepted what Ash as saying, but wanted to make sure he could do it with the help of his trainer at the actual league.

"Whoa! Check it out!" Ash said as the path neared a hill that seemed to overlook something. Ash made a sprint for it and made it to the top just for his eyes to begin to sparkle and his mouth to open with a large smile. Serena and Bonnie came next and they had the same reaction. Brock took his gaze out of the pamphlet he read and looked ahead to gasp in a wow.

"What is it guys?" Clemont replied as he caught up and sank to his legs to catch his breath. When he finished he looked up and smiled at what he saw:

There was a beautiful sky above a large sky line. The sky line had a circular shape from the angle that the gang was looking at it. In the center there was the obvious tower that indicated what city it was. The large buildings making the city look extremely beautiful and towering. Beyond the city, there was a large hill, and on top of the that hill was a disk like figure that had many small buildings around it. From the angle the gang was looking, it looked like a small disk, but in reality, it was the large hexagonal stadium that the main event was going to happen: The Kalos League.

"Lumiose City! There it is!" Ash shouted with glee.

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu shouted after his trainer while hopping on Ash's shoulder.

"Let's go!" Ash continued as he began to break into a sprint.

"Wait for me!" Serena exclaimed as she ran towards the city behind Ash.

"I'm coming!" Brock exclaimed as Bonnie got on Brock's shoulders and began to piggy back ride Brock.

"Come on big brother! It is your city!" Bonnie exclaimed on top of Brock's shoulders over to Clemont who was sighing.

"Come on… Why do you have to run?" Clemont replied as he began to try the best he could to try and keep up.

Just about anyone could wish Clemont good luck…

Anyone could indeed.

 **A/N: FINALLY! WE CAN GET FOCUSED ON THE KALOS LEAGUE WOOO!**

 **I know y'all have been waiting so much for this arc to begin, and it is about to. For now my longest planned arc that will probably reach over chapter 50. This will be extremely fun!**

 **Anyways, a lot of amazing things are happening, I will do my best to not disappoint and give you guys some good character development!** **You guys should watch out for something that Ash will begin to develop. This will be something interesting that I did not think Ash would ever have, but he will (This is exactly what you are thinking about).**

 **Anyways, what happened last chapter left an impact on Ash, and as you guys can probably tell, Noivern is not happy with that Zweilous… And Charizard is apparently... weak? We will have to see what happens in the future to further develop what is going of with Ash's two flying types.**

Also, you may be asking yourself, "Did you just spoil an Ash vs Drake and an Ash vs Alain on us for the league?"... No, it was just a reference. Alain is Ash… Remember? And not only that, Drake is not even participating. Yes, it was just Ash bringing up a canonical truth that is just an innocent assumption for this fic, it didn't really happen. That is just to clear up some confusion as that was not an actual foreshadow of a matchup, but will those pokemon show up? Here is the question: What would be a league in which all of the pseudo legendaries from gens 1 to 7 didn't show up?

 **That just gave out huge hints of the future LOL!**

 **I should shut up now…**

 **Enjoy the chapter!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 28- A new chapter begins!

 **Lumiose City** **(Ash POV):**

"So guys!" I start as we walk through the streets of the city and towards the nearest pokemon center. "What is your favorite thing about the city?" I ask out of curiosity. "My personal favorite is the food!"

"Pika pikachu pikapi!" Pikachu says on my shoulder possibly meaning the same thing as me.

"I like the Nurse Joys and Officer Jennys!" Brock exclaimed while putting his hand to his heart and having flashing eyes. I just smile. Of course Brock, you hit on like two girls already and we just got here.

"I like the infrastructure," Clemont replied which makes me smile. Of course the technology fascinates the boy genius, he is an inventor.

"Mine is the pretty girls I hit on for my brother!" Bonnie said with a smile as she elbowed Clemont. I could not help but smile at how Bonnie and Clemont get along. It was one of the most heartwarming things to me to have someone closer than just a friend. Of course, I wonder if I will ever have that…

I look towards Serena and she smiles a nice warm smile at me. I couldn't help but smile back, it was heartwarming. Serena then spoke up, "I like the fanciness and fashion, even the atmosphere… it can make things so _romantic_." Serena grabbed her ribbon as she said this with a slight pink tint on her cheeks.

The ribbon I gave her…

I wonder what she means by that. Bonnie then came over and whispered something in Serena's ear that made the latter jump with a completely red face. I wonder what Bonnie told her, it would have been fun to tease Serena like that from time to time from my part, of course I decided to just shake it off as I bumped into someone who fell on the side walk.

I look down and see a person around my age lying there. He had brown skin and a black shirt. He also had green hair and a weird bracelet that had like some sort of red crystal on it. "Oh, hey," I say as I reach over to the teenager. He accepts my hand and I pull him up. "Sorry about that, I guess I should have seen where I saw going."

"It's OK," the boy replies with a weak voice. Just by looking at this guy, I could tell there was something that was bothering him… Something internal bothered him and it was making him look depressed.

I just could not put a finger on it.

"Hey, are you alright?" I ask as I watch the boy looking down at the ground as if in strong thought. Something seemed strange.

"Huh?! Oh… n-nothing, gotta go now, bye!" The boy replied to me as he runs off. The others and I watch him with a raised eyebrow as he disappears through the circular shape of the city.

We make it in front of the pokemon center and I could tell that I was ready. It was here that I would register to finally join the league….

I sighed when the automatic door opened because the lobby of the pokemon center was completely empty. Looking beyond the counter I notice that Nurse Joy was free and standing behind her counter. When she noticed me walk in, she gave me a smile as I neared. The others were close behind me as I approached the counter.

"Hello there, how may I help you?" Nurse Joy asks me on a welcoming voice.

I take out my badge case from my bag and I reach into my pocket and grab my Pokédex. "Hey Nurse Joy! I am reg-"

I was interrupted by Brock who appeared in front of Nurse Joy down on one knee. "Nurse Joy! You are so beautiful and kind and I wish to have a beautiful future with-..."

"Oh my gosh Brock," Bonnie replied as she grabbed Brock by the ear and began to pull him away. It was a very satisfying thing to see now that I think about it.

"I love you Nurse Joy…" Brock managed to say as Bonnie pulled him away. The others sweat dropped at this and I just gave out a slight giggle as he turned back to Nurse Joy.

"Anyways," I started as I turned to the health care provider as I showed her the badge case and my pokedex. "I would like to register for the league!"

Nurse Joy smiled and replied to my by saying, "Sure thing, let me make sure that you have all eight badges." I see as Nurse Joy checks my badge case to make sure the badges are the correct ones and then she hands the badge case back to me and I put it in my pocket once she says: "The badges are good, now let's do your pokedex." Nurse Joy then inserted my pokedex into the slot of the computer and I saw as my picture and name popped up on screen. As I saw this, I noticed as Nurse Joy went a little wide eyed, but then she relaxed and said, "You are all registered, remember to be at Prism Tower tomorrow at 10:00 AM sharp, that is when the trial will begin! Here is a pamphlet with some things you should know about the league before it begins."

"Thanks!" I really as I take back my pokedex and grab the pamphlet which I then put in my pocket. I then turn to Pikachu and say, "Hear that Pikachu, we will be participating together in the Victory Road!"

"Pika Pikachu!" Pikachu replies to me and I smile.

"You are also going to need a partner," a voice tells me. I look back up at Nurse Joy and she smiles. "It is a paired event, inspired by the Masterclass, we decided to challenge the participants to work with someone else to make it to the league."

I look at my companions… Which one would I end up choosing? "So, it can be anyone?" I ask while turning to Nurse Joy. She nods and smiles at me. "OK, I will figure this out soon, thanks for the heads up!" I then find myself walking back out of the pokemon center.

"Have a nice day!" I hear as I exit the building with my friends. I smile as the sliding doors let me out to the sunny streets of Kalos.

"I will never forget you!"

"Yea, yea Brock, there are plenty of Nurse Joy's in the sea," I hear Bonnie say as she drags Brock with us outside of the pokemon center.

 **Normal POV in the pokemon center:**

Nurse Joy watched as Ash, Pikachu, Serena, Brock, Clemont and Bonnie left the pokemon center through the sliding doors. Nurse Joy put herself in thought for a second and asked herself why Ash seemed so familiar…

And then she remembered:

'Isn't that the boy that jumped off Prism Tower with a Pikachu and Froakie?' Nurse Joy thought as she went back to work.

 **Normal POV at Bonnie and Clemont's House:**

"Meyer, thanks so much for letting us stay here," Brock said with a sincere smile.

Meyer, a bearded man with the same eye color as his two children responded back by saying, "The pleasure is all mine, please, come in." The group then walked into the apartment. It was a nice simple apartment with a kitchen to the left and a dining room. At the same place there was a couch and in front of it a TV. There was also three rooms, one for Meyer, Clemont and Bonnie. The group decides that the boys go to Clemont's room and Serena would join Bonnie in her room. "I will start preparing dinner for everyone, the journey may have been long from Snowbelle City!" Meyer exclaimed as he went into the kitchen and started gathering ingredients.

"Pika!"

"Thank you Meyer!/Dad!" The gang exclaimed as they made themselves at home.

Bonnie decides to take care of Pikachu as Ash was in deep thought about what he had to do during the trial. He turned to his friends and asked himself which one would be right for the trial. Ash then went up to Clemont and asked, "Clemont can I go to your room and have some time to think about tomorrow?"

"Sure Ash, take your time, I know how stressful things like this can be," Clemont replied with a smile as Ash nodded in appreciation and flashed a small smile before heading towards Clemont's room. He entered and closed the door behind him. Admiring the room, it was nice and simple and there were some posters of inventions and also many spare parts lying around. Ash cared less about these things as he sat down to think.

"What will I do tomorrow?" Ash asked himself as he looked at the pamphlet he was given. The cover was a picture of the stadium and the village around it. Obviously it was very interesting how the setup was very modern. There was also a picture of the scoreboard and there was an apparent hole in the middle of the stadium. Maybe for field changes.

Ash flipped to the first page and was met with a picture of the trial that he would be taking tomorrow. Below the picture there was some text which read:

 _We begin the Kalos League very soon, and it is to our responsibility that we make things even from the start. We will be having a special preliminary round where a participant chooses a partner that does not necessarily have to be a participant of the league. With this, we will reduce the amount of people that are battling in the actual tournament to an even 256 participants._

 _Guidelines:_

 _The challenge begins at 10:30 AM sharp so that means that everyone should listen to the instructions that will be given at Prism Tower which is where the challenge will begin._

 _It is recommended that the partner one chooses is beneficial to their performance, that way it is easier for the participant to get through._

 _A participant and his or her partner must use only one pokemon during the challenge._

Ash smirked at that last rule he read. He wanted to find a way to start of with Pikachu, and now he got it. Pikachu would be an easy pokemon to go with.

Ash then continued reading:

 _Further instructions will be given at Prism Tower for the challenge to prevent cheating._

Ash then flipped the page over and was found with a large foldable. Ash then studied carefully as he looked at what could be in store for him:

 _256 trainers… one winner._

Ash then preceded to look at the pictures which included many pictures of battling pokemon and trainers making poses as they commanded. Ash's gaze then went to the format of the league and it was very surprising:

 _Top 256:_ _3 on 3 battle on a random battlefield._

 _Top 128:_ _Surprise battle format with same battlefield._

Ash looked at the pamphlet in confusion as he asked himself what was the meaning of "surprise", but other than that, he figured something random would happen.

 _Top 64:_ _Back to 3 on 3 battles and there is random battlefields._

 _Top 32:_ _Another 3 on 3 with random battlefields, only this battle has a prize for winning of 200k Kaleuros… People definitely fight for this!_

 _Top 16/8/4:_ _Start of 6 on 6 with random fields._

 _Finals:_ _6 on 6 battle on a special battlefield._

Ash questioned what was meant by a "special" battlefield, but again, he shook it off. Ash then turned to the back paper and he was met with a picture of a gold shaped cup that had two handles and a special plate at the bottom. It was obviously the trophy, but as Ash looked at it he asked himself: "Am I really just battling for this gold trophy and the rank of Champion?" Ash thought hard to himself as he then smiled and replied to his own question by saying, "I am battling to get closer with my pokemon… and to move on from my past." Ash then smiled at himself as he looked at the trophy in the picture once more. "I am going to do my best to in you as a token of my hard work," Ash said as he smirked while looking up from the pamphlet.

Ash then thought to himself about what he would do the next day so that he could make it to the league. He would need someone with: a) a good sense of direction. b) fast person. And c) be able to hold off next to Pikachu very well.

Ash thought, which one of his three friends could he use? Ash then put his mind around Clemont. He mentally face palmed himself for even coming up with the thought since Clemont was an extremely slow runner. There would be no way that Ash would defeat the race with Clemont by his side.

Ash then thought of Brock, he had a good sense of direction and he could run, but his pokemon were Steelix and Swampert meaning that he had a couple of slow pokemon. Slow pokemon would probably be as bad as a slow human. Granted: Brock did have some large tanks, but the fact that they were ground types means that if they use earthquake or any other ground type move, Pikachu would probably be weakened a lot if he got hit by accident… And last time Ash checked, earthquake doesn't care if the target is a foe or ally.

Lastly there was Serena. The honey blonde could run and had a good sense of direction as well. She also had some decently fast pokemon. Now that Ash thought about it, he would probably need a water type to help out against any ground types that could be used and Brionne could help with that. Also, the fact that Braixen could give off a good amount of light for the cave that began the victory road.

Ash knew that it was between Brock and Serena, but when it came to who could participate the most with him, it was Serena who won out in the end. As Ash thought this he took a deep breath. The girl was already stressed out about him even participating in the league, and now having to participate in the league herself would be more stressful. Ash also thought of the fact that she would feel guilty if things did not go their way. Ash relaxed and smiled while thinking to himself that Serena was his only hope anyways to a partner, and if things go badly, there is always next time.

Ash went to the handle of the door and turned it slowly. He then pushed the door open and slowly walked towards the living room where Meyer had put a battle for the others to watch on television. Ash looked closer and noticed it was a strong battle between a boy with a Jolteon that went up against a mega Garchomp. Ash did not put much attention to the battle as he looked for his first line of business. Ash noticed that Bonnie was with Pikachu in front of the television while they cheered on the battle. Brock and Clemont were analyzing the battle with Meyer who apparently did know a lot about pokemon battles to Ash's surprise. The raven haired boy then looked around and asked to himself the whereabouts of Serena since the honey blonde was not anywhere to be seen.

Ash decided to look somewhere else, so while everyone else was focused on the battle, he went into the kitchen. Looking around, he noticed that Serena was doing the dishes. It did not seem like the perfect time to ask her to Ash, but he needed to do it before he forgot. Ash slowly crept up on the honey blonde, who was humming to herself with a smile. Ash just giggled a little, but he decided to tap Serena's shoulder to grab her attention.

"Huh?!" Serena asked herself with startle as she turned around with a red face to see Ash slightly smiling with a shy expression. "Ash? What are you doing here?!" Serena asked as she turned back around to the sink trying to hide her blush from Ash.

"Well, you see…" Ash started with a smile until he scratched the side of his face and asked: "Would you be my _partner_ for the challenge tomorrow?"

"Huh?!" Serena said with a dumbfounded expression as she turned around to meet Ash's gaze. She was not even close to expecting that Ash would choose her to be his partner.

Ash saw Serena's look of disbelief and put his hands behind his back and replied with, "You see, I kinda wanted you to be my partner for the trial since I felt like you would be the best partner for me."

Serena instantly blushed a little, but she looked away and sighed while looking down, "What about Clemont and Brock? You know I am not a battler." Serena then slightly jumped as she felt a hand on her shoulder turn her around.

"Serena, I already thought of them, but think about it this way: Clemont is too slow, and Brock's pokemon are too slow," Ash replied with a wink.

"But Ash…" Serena replied as she clenched her fists. "What if I cause you to lose tomorrow?"

Ash just smiled because he was prepared for this and grabbed Serena's fists. Serena instantly relaxed at this and then Ash looked at Serena's eyes and said, "I don't think we will lose, and in the event that we do… Remember, at least we tried." Ash then unraveled Serena's fists into relaxed hands and let go. Serena was barely able to process what was going on with a semi red face, but she smiled at Ash and felt a large amount of confidence surge through her blood vessels.

Serena then winked and said, "We will win tomorrow, we won't give up until the very end!"

Ash returned the smile and turned back to the door with a smile and just as he opened it he said, "Thanks Serena, I look forward to tomorrow." Ash then walked out of the kitchen and as the door closed behind him, Serena turned back to what she was doing prior to when Ash asked the question.

"I won't let you down Ash," Serena said as she smirked. "I need to help you win this league right?" Serena asked while looking down at the dishes and shadowing her eyes in her honey blonde hair. "Then I will make sure I do everything I can to help you reach the top…"

 **In the living room:**

"Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted as he jumped on Ash's shoulders.

"Hey bud," Ash said as he petted the mouse and turned to everyone that was in front of the television. "What did I miss?"

"Only a Jolteon that took down a Mega Garchomp by itself," Brock replied with crossed arms. "We were watching the champion of the Soul Stadium battle, and his Jolteon truly is something else."

"Not only that, he had this pokemon called Decidueye that could shoot possessed arrows that could prevent a pokemon from switching," Clemont said as he adjusted his glasses. "The amazing thing is that it is a rare one too, it is shiny of all pokemon."

"Truly a strong battler," Meyer replied with crossed arms. "I wonder if my Ampharos would even stand a chance against that Jolteon!"

"Well, you guys sure have seen a good battle, just wait until Pikachu and I blow your socks off during the league with my pokemon," Ash replied with a smirk.

"We hope so too, your Pikachu can really kick some a**!" Bonnie shouted while pointing at the sky. Everyone looked at the little girl with shocked expressions. Clemont looked like he wanted to die while Meyer just sweat dropped. "Ummm…" bonnie replied nervously. "Excuse me!" Bonnie finished with an innocent smile at the others. Clemont and Meyer face palmed as Ash and Brock snickered.

 **Streets of Lumiose:**

"The two hundred thousand Kaleuros I have to win in order to save Lillie…" Hau said as he walked across the dark and empty… or semi empty streets while shadowing his eyes, "I can and I _will_."

Ashura was close behind listening to Hau and he felt something crack inside of him as he heard Hau say this. He slowly walked up to Hau tapped on his shoulder. The green haired boy was a little frightened, but turned around regardless of his fears to be met with the cloaked man that was Ashura. Ashura, who had a shadowed face asked, "This Lillie person, how important is she to you?"

Hau looked up in shock and replied, "She is my sister… She recently an accident where she ended up falling into a state where I can't bare see her…" Hau then clenched his fists with great strength. "I have to get the prize money, or else… I don't want to think about it sir." Hau then bowed and said as he turned around to leave. "I will be going now."

"He is helping someone he loves…" Ashura whispered to himself as he looked down at the ground. Ashura then took a large leap that allowed him to reach the tops of buildings without a problem and with that he vanished into the night sky.

 **A/N: So I decided to introduce the format of the league so that it does not come to a surprise to our heroes when the league starts. Also, Ash choosing Serena to be his partner was probably expected since Serena and Ash worked together during the masterclass.**

 **Other than that, this wraps up today's chapter as I go into getting the league prepared. The league will hopefully be awesome, but as of the time I am writing this chapter, I should probably look into how I can make the next chapter more exciting. It will be the victory road of all things so I have to make things interesting right?**

 **Also, I want to mention that since the league will be in Lumiose City, I am going to be making up my own victory road in order to make things more interesting for you guys and stir away a little bit from the games and anime.**

 **Anyways, I hope you enjoyed!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **FantasyLover88: Everyone wants to kill them xD! Anyways, thanks for the review, and yes, Ash does know what Squishy is!**

 **ArmorshippingFan: We'll see what happens. The name change was to keep Ashura anonymous during the league, but you know, Satoshi came to me as a nice name. Thanks for reviewing!**

 **Pokekip15: It is Diantha! How did you know?**

 **Shullmer: I would rather give him a MIZU SHURIKEN! Anyways, thanks for reviewing, I feel the same way xD!**

 **Cutesaralisa: Just wait until they come face to face once again!**

 **Guest 1: Glad you enjoyed, yes they are pain in the asses right now, but what can we do? We'll see xD! Thanks for reviewing!**


	29. Chapter 29

**Ash POV:**

The bed felt so nice. It was like if I could sleep forever. The warmth of the covers around me and my face in my pillow...Mmmmmmm, so cozy. I should really thank Clemont for letting me sleep in the spare bed in his room. He really was wanting me to have a good night's rest because of today and I am happy that I am getting it. After all, it was the day the Kalos League would begin…

"Ash…" I hear an angelic voice resonate in my ears.

Five more minutes please…

"Ash…" I hear the same voice,only it was slightly louder this time and I groan and turn on the bed away from it. "Ash wake up… it's the big day!" I knew it was the big day, but I wanted to sleep in a little more… Is there a problem with that?

"Ash…" the voice hits me again only that this time it was louder than ever. It was a sweet feminine voice but I still felt like sleeping. "Alright Ash, you asked for it…" wait.. what did I ask for…? "PIKACHU USE THUNDERBOLT!" I hear with a strong and determined tone.

"Pika…"

Oh no…

"CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!"

It all started out by feeling like a tingly sensation, and then I felt my entire body completely arching itself back in pain and out of control. "AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" I shouted as I shot open my eyes and jumped in the bed. Through the dangerous attack I fell out of the bed and hurt myself on the rug down in the ground… "Ugh…" I moaned as I scratched my eyes and looked at my attacker. What I was met with was a snickering electric mouse, a lemon blonde girl with a yellow mouse poking its head out, and the blue eyes of a honey blonde female staring at me while trying to hold in her laughter.

The honey blonde then moves to be face to face with me and says, "So you are finally up, aren't you?"

I scratched the back of my head and said, "Alright Serena I am up…"

Serena then stood back up and replied with: "Brock and Meyer have prepared breakfast while Clemont headed out to prepare Prism Tower for the opening ceremony of the Lumiose Conference…" Serena then smirked, "I'm bringing my A-game, so you better bring yours Ash."

My eyes widened at such a change of personality that Serena was giving me… But I liked it, "Since when were you the one participating in the league?"

Serena just opened the door and smirked at me with a sinister face that I did not expect the honey blonde to ever have, "Since you asked me to carry you through the Victory Road…" Serena then changed her smirk to a bright smile. "So be ready!" And with that she stepped out of the room.

Bonnie followed her, but before that she turned to me and said, "Hehe, watch her carry you bridal style to the stadium." Bonnie then left with the intention of making me blush. Which worked as I felt myself turn extremely warm in my cheeks.

"Nenne."

"Blur blur blur!" Squishy said as he followed Bonnie out the door by hopping.

"Pika Pikachu…" Pikachu face palmed as he went after the two girls.

Welp, let's put on our clothes then! I need my scarf, gloves, undershirt, jacket, pants, shoes… I then look above the dresser and grab what was on top…

Can't forget my hat!

 **A/N: So… Who really thought that I would not include an Ash wake up moment. Also, making Serena look like a badass was my intention the whole time xD. Anyways, today will be the trial, but I am going to introduce to us a new character that will probably play a role later on in the league. We saw him talking with Hunter before and this time he will be with him. I wonder what for… I think it is obvious at this point. Also, another girl we will see today as well.**

 **Also, we get to introduce our traveling group to the original group of friends. So there will probably be a lot of introductions.**

 **I want you guys to keep in mind that during this league I will try and make all of Ash's pokemon star one way or another so don't expect any crazy things like in any fic where Ash destroys all his opponents.**

 **Also, like I said before, the Ash-Greninja transformation will be a secret for now, so don't expect it too much until later on.**

 **I will begin to also post some things to help you with the league such as a key to the scoreboard and the announcer so it is a lot more unique than other fics.**

 **Anyways, today we focus on the Kalos League Victory Road which I made up since this is in Lumiose City. This means that I will have a completely made up trial that will make this extremely interesting.**

 **I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 29- Race to Victory!

 **At the Lumiose Airport:**

"Eevee!" Eevee shouted while staring in the direction of two people coming towards Eevee and Hunter. Hunter saw the two people and the Jolteon next to the guy of the two and grew wide eyed.

"Leaf! Night!" Hunter exclaimed as he ran up with Eevee to the duo.

"Hunter!" Night and Leaf exclaimed as they ran up to Hunter. Jolteon was next to Night and ran ahead towards Eevee to have the two members of the same species tackle each other into a hug.

Leaf was a girl with pale skin, green eyes, long silver hair, who was wearing a fedora with a pokeball on it along with a long pink blouse and a long white skirt. As soon as Leaf saw Hunter she sprinted and tackled the boy into a hug. Hunter blushed slightly as Leaf pulled away obviously enjoying the hug, but then Night came up behind the duo.

"So what's cooking?" Night asked as he grabbed Hunter's hand and pulled Hunter into a brotherly hug. "Been a long time bro!"

Hunter smirked and replied with, "It has, how's your team?"

Night smirked and put a hand over his belt, "I only brought Jolteon and Decidueye with me. I left the others to relax at the Soul stadium. I made sure to tell Infernape to not throw a party with the others though."

"Oh god," Hunter slightly snickered at the thought of a party ran by pokemon. Hunter did understand that Night had such a sense of humor as his pokemon. Hunter then thought back to the time that Night's Infernape almost burned down an event center while the local school was trying to host PROM. Hunter slightly laughed a little at that. Then Hunter turned to Night and asked, "Are you ready to attempt the Victory Road."

"Haha, I am totally going to carry you," Night joked as Jolteon jumped on his trainer's shoulder. "Just kidding, but Jolteon is the pokemon I will be using." Night replied with a smirk.

"And I will use Eevee!" Hunter replied as the Eevee jumped on his shoulder.

"Ummm… Hunter?" Hunter turned to the soft voice of Leaf to then listen to what the silver haired girl had to say. "Are you going to show us…" Leaf then lowered her voice a little and asked, "Zapdos?"

Hunter smiled at Leaf and said, "Later, right now we have to get to the actual league!" The group then began to walk back to the exit of the airport in the direction of Prism Tower. "This will be an amazing league and I know it!"

 **With Hau:**

"Alright, it all starts here… I have to surpass so many trainers to get to my goal and save Lillie…" Hau said to himself in a bench close to Lumiose City. Hau then pulled a pokeball out of his belt and looked at it while saying. "Incineroar… We have been through so much together and it is up to us to work together."

The pokeball in Hau's hand slightly shook. Hau sighed and looked up to see the podium being set up by a boy with a blue jumpsuit, lemon blonde hair and glasses. Hau recognized the boy as Clemont, the gym leader he defeated with one of his strongest pokemon.

He stood up from the bench and went up to the podium and noticed that Clemont was having a little bit of difficulty with the microphone since the cord was tangled under his feet.

"Clemont?" Hau asked as he approached the young inventor.

"Huh? Hau?" Clemont asked with confusion.

"Need help?"

Clemont went a little wide eyed as he looked down and said, "uhh...Yea, thanks!"

Hau smiled at this which shocked the inventor just as much as the person that smiled himself. Hau couldn't believe it, he just flashed a smile at someone. Hau now noticed something: It is a lot easier to smile than to frown.

 **With Ash, Serena, Bonnie, and Brock:**

The gang was going in the direction of Prism Tower. The tower was beaming through the sunny day in front of many people that were also in the streets headed in that very direction.

"Pikachu, are you ready?" Ash asked the rodent on his shoulder.

Pikachu looked at Ash and smiled, "Pika pika!"

"Great! We are totally ready to take this trial on!" Ash exclaimed as he looked at the honey blonde that claimed would "carry" him. "So Serena, what is the plan?"

Serena turned to Ash, "What plan?"

Ash just snickered and said, "Let me guess, we are winging this, aren't we?"

Bonnie and Brock face palmed at Ash's assertion. They knew there was no possibility that Serena would be _that_ crazy.

"Exactly!" Serena replied with a large smile on her face.

Bonnie and Brock completely fell flat at this. Serena had just defeated them when it came to deciding what her character was like. Ash looked at Serena and then turned away to snicker a little. He would have never guessed Serena would be that reckless, specially when it looked like a strategy was crucial. "Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted as he got everyone's looked at what Pikachu was pointing to and when they saw the people running towards them they smiled.

"Ash! Serena! Hi!" Shauna exclaimed as she reached the group.

"Jeez Shauna, be more careful!" Calem wheezed from behind as he fell to his knees to catch his breath. Calem then noticed Ash and Serena and said, "Hey guys, long time no see!"

"Hey Calem!" Ash said as he looked at the jet black haired boy. "Wait, where is Trevor and Tierno."

"Oh, they went straight to Prism Tower since they were teaming up," Calem then put an arm around Shauna and said, "Shauna and I are going to be teaming up as well, we will make sure to make it!"

"Oh yea?" Ash declared as he put an arm around Serena while declaring. "Serena and I will crush everyone!"

The two girls laughed at each other with slight blushes due to how the boys were treating them previously. Brock then spoke up, "You two must be friends of Ash and Serena, nice to meet you, I'm Brock."

Calem shook Brock's hand while saying, "Nice to meet you, I'm Calem!"

Shauna then spoke up, "And I'm Shauna, nice to meet you!" Shauna then turned to Bonnie and said, "Bonnie you look like you have grown so much!"

Bonnie just smiled and said, "Shauna, can I take care of your Tropius later on?"

Shauna nodded, but Calem pouted, "What about Chesnaught? He has not had a brush in so long."

"Fine," Bonnie resigned. "I can do Chesnaught as well!"

"Guys, the event will start soon, let's go!" Ash exclaimed as he started walking towards Prism Tower. The others began to follow the raven haired trainer as the event was going to start soon.

 **With Ashura:**

Ashura was cloaked by his large hoodie that went over his face and eyes so that no one could recognize him. Ashura looked at the crowd forming in front of Prism Tower and sighed. Ashura was on a tree near Prism Tower hidden on top of it. Ashura then looked down and caught a glimpse of his son walking with a group of friends… Ashura went wide eyed as he saw who he was walking with… He recognized Calem since the time he battled his son, but that did not catch his attention. It was Serena that he looked at.

"Isn't that Tony's daughter?" Ashura asked himself as he looked at the honey blonde. He saw how close his son was to the daughter of apparently some person named Tony and sighed. "Serena… If only you knew the truth about your father…"

Ashura then saw a lemon haired boy with glasses and a blue jumpsuit go towards the group. It seemed that there was some introductions that happened, but it was very interesting how everyone was so friendly to each other.

Ashura shifted his gaze among the crowd and noticed the boy he talked to the other night, and then shifting his gaze a little more and he noticed one of his strongest opponents: The boy with the Eevee. It took Ashura Darkrai AND Aegislash to take down that person, and it definitely was amazing how someone could team so many amazing moves to such a small Eevee. Ashura did remember that as one of his strongest opponents at a top 4 battle at the Indigo League… Not even Lance stood a chance.

Ashura then shifted his gaze back to Ash and asked himself, "Would Ash be strong enough to battle my A team?"

 **With Ash:**

Ash and his friends were down at the bottom looking up at Prism Tower. Within the crowd he noticed how everyone was looking towards the tower where there was a podium and stage set up. The stage was large enough so that Ash could see the person despite the crowd. The cheering had gotten very loud as people were waiting for the event to start.

Suddenly, everyone turned their attention to the tower as the sound of footsteps covered the speakers. Everyone looked up to see the man with the lab coat walk up to the stage. He then put the microphone to his mouth and began to talk: "Hello people of Lumiose City and all over the world!"

At this everyone responded by cheering at the professor as he kept speaking, "I am Professor Sycamore and welcome to the Kalos League! It is amazing how many participants we have this year!" The professor then looked down at a piece of paper and said, "We have six hundred and thirty seven registered trainers this year! That is more than any other year!" Sycamore let the audience roar as he then continued, "Since we added one round, it won't be the top one hundred and twenty eight that make it to the actual tournament, but this time two hundred and fifty six!" Everyone cheered at this and Ash felt that his ears were on fire as he looked to his left and noticed Clemont covering Bonnie's ears. "I notice that everyone is eager to begin, but here is how things will commence."

Sycamore then stopped as three carpets under the feet of everyone standing lit up. Ash was near the left carpet as he watched Professor Sycamore signal to them, "That, is the route to the actual stadium. People that are not participating in the tournament will be able to use the normal path to get to the stadium. All challengers including their chosen partner will have to follow this pathway through the streets of Lumiose City and travel through the inside of the hill that leads to the top and to the finish line at the trainer's village." Sycamore then looked at the crowd and followed by saying, "If you have the pokemon you are going to use, then reveal them from their pokeballs.

Ash looked around to see that everyone was taking out pokeballs as large flashes of light materialized into many pokemon that looked amazingly powerful to battle in the league. Ash then turned to Serena who took out a pokeball which opened to reveal Braixen. Ash smiled knowing that Pikachu would work amazingly well with Braixen. Serena then kneeled down to Braixen and explained the situation. Braixen looked very happy that she got chosen and from the looks of it Braixen was also very determined.

"Now, I am going to need everyone who is not participating to stand clear of the carpets," Professor Sycamore said as he looked down on the crowd. Ash then noticed as many of the people including Brock, Clemont, and Bonnie moved to the side leaving Serena, Braixen, Ash himself and Pikachu.

Looking around, Ash saw many people, to his left he saw the boy with green hair he had bumped into before using a large tiger pokemon that Ash had never seen before. He looked to be working alone, but at the same time, it made Ash feel confident that the person was probably a strong trainer. At the same time, Ash also saw another boy with an Eevee who had an emerald suit and green vest teaming with another person that had a black and blue jacket along with a Jolteon.

Ash then turned to see another person with blue hair that made him have a sick feeling to his mouth… Damian.

"Hey, good luck!" Calem said as he and Shauna snapped Ash from his thoughts.

"You too!" Ash exclaimed as he looked at Serena. Shifting his focus to what was behind Serena also made his confused, there was a man with a cloak that was looking in his direction. Next to him was an Aegislash which was in shield form. Ash could have sworn he saw raven hair inside the cloak, but he then refocused his gaze to the honey blonde in front of him. She looked worried about Ash's expression, but Ash just said, "Don't worry about it… It was nothing."

Serena shrugged her shoulders and looked at the direction away from Prism Tower… It really would be a strong competition.

"Are the trainer's ready?" Professor Sycamore asked through the microphone and everyone roared in affirmative.

Ash and Serena along with their pokemon tensed up their muscle tension… Inside their minds they told each other that they would never give up until the end…

"This challenge will begin at the moment that the fireworks of Prism Tower go off," Professor Sycamore included. "On your marks…"

"Get set…"

"(Ppppppeeeeeeewwww)... **BOOM!** "

And with that, everyone that was participating began to run with extreme energy through the paths. Ash saw as Bonnie, Clemont and Brock wished them luck as they passed. Ash smiled and waved as Serena also gave a small wave. The duo then ran through the city with great speed. At one point though, Ash saw as the people that were around him began to lag behind, so he turned to Serena and smiled, "Told you (pant) that we would (pant) make a good team!"

Serena blushed at this, but the blush meant increased blood flow, which meant that she could run faster than anyone she could have ever thought would run. Serena then put herself ahead of Ash as the duo ran through a corner following the pathway. The streets were littered with people watching the event live and it was clearly a great thing to watch. Ash saw as Serena looked back and smiled as Braixen and Pikachu were easily keeping up with their trainers.

 **In a cafe with Meyer watching the Television:**

"This is so exciting, it has just begun and I know that it is already stiff in competition," Meyer said to himself as everyone in the cafe looked at the television.

The attention of everyone then went to the television where Malva was portrayed.

"Hello there citizens of Kalos, the Lumiose Conference is soon to begin as the trainers participating are shown running through the Victory Road," Malva stated as she pointed towards the side of the screen. The green back ground then turned to clips showing some of the running trainers.

The clips went through depicting as people ran in between the buildings and through the streets as they followed the pathways. It clearly was a strong challenge as the pathways then split off into many paths that could be taken that all lead to different caves. Somehow, there would be a way to reach the end of the cave and to the actual trainer village.

Malva then continued explaining, "Only two hundred and fifty six trainers will pass this stage,and only one can win the tournament." Malva then turned to the camera and said, "I am Malva and I will keep updating you in the Kalos League as the tournament progresses with Professor Sycamore, Diantha, and even some different popular people around Kalos. So stay tuned!" With that, Malva smiled and the television went blank.

"This is sure to be an interesting league," Meyer muttered to himself as the people that were in the cafe began to murmur amongst themselves their predictions for the Kalos League.

 **With Hunter and Night:**

"Check it out!" Hunter exclaimed as he saw a cave up ahead. Night followed as they saw the entrance to the cave and stopped running to then look around and notice that they were both by themselves.

"A cave," Night said as he looked at the mouth. "Might as well go through it."

The duo stepped into the cave and the atmosphere changed from light to dark. The darkness was visible though as the duo went through the cave which was just a straight rocky tunnel. Occasionally, Jolteon would spark some electricity in order to create some light.

"Night, check this out!" Hunter exclaimed as he saw that in his way was a footprint. Though this did not look like a small one either. It was larger than Hunter's foot and it had spikes coming out of it.

"Eevee…" Eevee said as he sniffed the footprint. Night looked at the print with a perplexed look on his face until he saw Eevee point to something.

"Jolteon…" Night said with a serious tone. "Use thunder and light up what is in our path for us."

"Teon!" The electric type exclaimed as he made himself glow on electricity and began to make a beam of electricity that slammed the ground harmlessly in front of the duo.

"Eevee, keep your guard up," Hunter replied as he began to walk in front of the group.

The duo kept walking for a few minutes until they reached a fork that led either left or right. Night looked at the pathway and noticed that there was a way to find a way towards the exit if they pulled their heads together. "Hunter, did they ever tell you what kind of pokemon live in these caves?"

"No, they didn't, why?" Hunter replied until he looked at the fork and began to think about which path to use. "Why don't we try the left first?"

"Sure, let's go left then," Night replied as he began to walk in the left direction. "If we run into-..."

"ROAR!" A large sound caused the entire cave to shake as the sound of large footsteps reached the duo. Night and Hunter gritted their teeth as they saw a Tyrantrum get in their way of the fork. The dinosaur pokemon had apparently came from the left side too to make things worse, but now it was completely blocking them.

"Great…" Night said as he turned to Hunter. "No choice, don't we…"

"Nope…" Hunter then put his arm out and exclaimed: "Shadow Ball!"

"Eeveeeeeeee!" Eevee exclaimed as he formed a large Shadow Ball in his jaw and launched it in the direction of the giant pokemon. The ball of dark energy continued until it hit the torso of the Tyrantrum thus making the pokemon fall back.

"I don't want to hurt it too much," Night remarked as he looked ahead at Tyrantrum who was now on the ground. "Let's try and get around it." Hunter nodded at this as Night and Jolteon lead the way to go around the left fork and with that, Hunter and Eevee followed. Tyrantrum though, he got back up very agitated at what the duo had just down to it as he began to chase the duo to a sprint across the left fork. Night and Jolteon then stopped running and turned around as Night put a hand in the air and commanded, "Use Shadow Ball at the roof and block the path!" Jolteon quickly obeyed and made a dark purple ball form on his mouth and then he shot it at the room. The ball then caused rocks to start to fall and fall which then stacked on top of each other in a way that blinded the pokemon.

Hunter sighed and looked back, "This will definitely make the trial harder… Let's keep going then…"

Night nodded as he made it to his friend and they began to run through the caves.

 **With Hau:**

Hau was walking with his Incineroar through a cave. Incineroar was using his blazing belt in order to create light. As Hau walked he thought about why he was doing this: Lillie… Saving Lillie. Hau knew he had to last to make it past to the round of top 32… Meaning he had to be one of the best battlers anyways. Hau just looked down and sighed as he then came across a three way fork in the road.

"Incineroar, which way?"

"Roar?" Incineroar asked as he created some light and looked at both ways. There had to be a way and Hau knew it. Hau then looked at the middle cave of the three and noticed the hooded man that had talked to him before with his Aegislash going through the cave as if sensing the way through. Hau decided to follow close behind as he noticed that the Aegislash then went into the cave walls and disappeared.

"Huh?" Hunter asked himself as he noticed that the cloaked man also disappeared. "I can see shadow sneak, but that last thing… Okay this is creepy." Hau admitted with an alarmed face as he kept walking. Suddenly, Hau reached a barrage of rocks that were on his way and he knew he had to do something about it. Hau then pumped his fist and shouted, "Darkest Lariat!"

"Roar!" Incineroar roared as he made his claws glow black and begin to slash down the rocks. The claws broke right through as Incineroar made it possible to walk right through.

"Thanks Incineroar," Hau replied as he walked through. The fire and dark type walked next to his trainer with satisfaction in his face. At this rate, they would make it.

 **With Ash and Serena:**

The cave shook as a battle was blazing inside of it.

"CHUUUUU!"

"XEN!"

A thunderbolt and flamethrower combined and hit an Arcanine and Magnezone. Their trainers had some faces of agitation as they commanded for a fire blast and flash cannon.

"Urgh, we did nothing to you guys!" Ash grunted with frustration as he gritted his teeth. "Pikachu spin and use thunderbolt as a counter shield!"

"So what?" One of the trainers asked as he witnessed the spinning tornado of thunderbolt absorb the five pronged beam and the silver attack. The trainer then smirked, "You are that guy that took on that Darkrai aren't you? Well, let's make sure you don't participate." The man then smirked as Ash made his face show obvious anger. "Hehe, Magnezone use tri attack!"

"Arcanine use fire blast again!" The other trainer exclaimed.

"I got this!" Serena declared as she stepped forward. "Braixen use psychic and make both attacks fly back at them!"

"Braixen!" Braixen shouted as she pulled out her wand and made the fire blast and the three sphered and multicolored beam glow blue and stop in their tracks. Braixen then whipped her wand around and made one last battle cry before landing the attacks to fly back at their trainer's pokemon. The attacks collided and the Magnezone took the super effective fire blast as Arcanine got paralyzed due to the additional effects of tri attack.

Ash then put his hand out and exclaimed, "Pikachu use thunderbolt, finish these guys off!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu exclaimed as he shot the beam of crackling electricity at the two pokemon thus causing them to fall in front of their trainers unconscious. "Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted as he turned to his trainer and pointed farther into the cave.

"Let's go Serena!" Ash exclaimed as he began to run. The honey blonde easily caught up to the raven haired trainer and his Pikachu as Braixen lit the way with her wand. "Ugh, that was like the… fifth set of trainers already?"

"Sixth," Serena corrected Ash. "We were able to take them out in a matter of attacks at least so we have to keep going, at least it should not be long now," Serena replied as Ash looked at her and nodded.

Suddenly, the duo ran into a "T" shaped fork in the cave and had to decide a way to go. "Dang it, another fork…" Ash said as he gritted his teeth. "Serena, does your tablet say which way?"

"Ash, I can't use the tablet, that's cheating," Serena then pouted. "That is the seventh time I reminded you!"

"You are counting them?" Ash asked as he rubbed the back of his head. Pikachu and Braixen both face palmed at this.

"Ash, I keep count of everything that has to do with you," Serena replied with a wink. Serena then turned to the fork and said, "Well you are in luck because I see that the right side has light coming out of it, this could be the end!"

"Let's go!" Ash exclaimed happily as he and Pikachu ran to the right side.

"Ash wait!"

"Brai!"

"Oh… boy…" Ash said as he saw that what was in front of him was a fire shaped flower and bug type like pokemon. "That is a Volcarona…"

"Ash! What did I tell you about… LOOK OUT!" Serena exclaimed as she noticed that Volcarona had sent a fiery wind towards the duo. It was obviously a heat wave and Ash went wide eyed as he saw this and heard Serena's alarmed cry.

"Pikachu use iron tail and slam it on the ground!" Ash exclaimed as he put a fist on the ground.

"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed as he leaped over Ash and made his tail glow white and harden. As soon as Pikachu reached the ground he swung his tail around and slammed it into the rocky ground of the cave which then caused a lot of dust to be sent into the air and consume the heat wave. The dust then calmed down and Ash noticed the rock in front of where the dust cloud happened to be red hot and melted.

"Serena…" Ash began. "Let's work together on this one!"

"Right!" Serena exclaimed as she turned to her pokemon. "Ready Braixen?" Braixen nodded as Serena then noticed that behind Volcarona there was a path. "Ash, look!" Serena exclaimed as she pointed. "Another cave!"

"Great, then let's get through this!" Ash declared as he pumped his fists. "Pikachu use quick attack!" Pikachu quickly began to charge the Volcarona which then began to launch towards the duo a strong beam of sounds towards the duo that made them all cover their ears in pain. It was obviously bug buzz. The bug buzz was also so powerful that Pikachu could barely get through. "Pikachu use thunderbolt!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu exclaimed as he shot the electric beam right at the Volcarona. As the beam approached, Volcarona stopped his attack and then made a blue shield appear in front of him to protect against the beam.

"Protect… dang it…" Ash cursed as he saw thunderbolt completely do nothing against the shield. "Pikachu quickly, use electric overdrive under Volcarona's body!"

"Electric overdrive…" Serena muttered in amazement as she saw how Pikachu made thunderstorm clouds in the cave that slammed lightning from above to Volcarona and making it rain so that Volcarona could not use the fire type attacks with ease anymore. Serena then gasped as she witnessed Pikachu send a barrage of electric rocks towards Volcarona to then envelop the bug and fire type to be involved in a large explosion. "So that is the move that Brock was talking about."

"Serena!" Ash then snapped Serena from her thoughts. "Volcarona is down, we can go through!"

"Awesome!" Serena exclaimed as the duo resumed traveling through the cave to later be found with an opening to the outside. Serena and Ash smiled at eachother as they went through the cave and got met with a lot of light that temporarily blinded them. Braixen put her wand back on her back as she looked at Pikachu and smiled. Ash and Serena then noticed they had reached a zone where under them was a checkered flag…

They had done it!

"Hello there young sir, may I ask for your name?" A lady asked Ash as the raven haired boy turned to her.

"My name is Ash Ketchum!"

The lady then smiled and looked at Ash while saying, "You made it just in time, congratulations on entering the actual tournament!"

"Yea, congrats Ash," Serena replied with her hands behind her back as she leaned in closer to the raven haired trainer.

"Thanks Serena," Ash replied sheepishly before turning to the lady. "And thanks to you too, do I have anything else to do in order for people to make sure that I made it?"

"Nope!" The lady replied. "You have been declared a participant as soon as you stepped out of the cave, and there is your face now!" The lady pointed to a monitor that was on top of a bench and under it was a face of Ash. "You are all set!"

"Thanks!" Ash exclaimed as the lady walked away. Ash then turned to Serena. The honey blonde had probably the biggest and warmest smile Ash could have ever seen. Ash instantly felt warmth in the smile, but he decided to smile back himself. "Serena, I could not have done this without you…"

Serena then blushed and grabbed her ribbon while saying, "How come? all I did really was light the way with Braixen."

Ash snickered and pointed at Braixen saying, "I have never seen a runner up at the masterclasses command her pokemon's psychic to redirect an attack back and defeat two trainers at once."

"Huh?" Serena asked not believing what she was hearing.

"What I am saying is that you were able to crush two trainers that are at the level of participation in the Kalos League…" Ash then turned to Braixen and said, "You really should be proud of Serena, she was an amazing battler with you today, and be proud of yourself too because she would not have been able to do this without you."

"Pika pika!" Pikachu exclaimed while giving Braixen a thumbs up.

Just like Serena, Braixen also found the praise as a lot and she blushed as she heard that.

"Ash! Serena!" Bonnie exclaimed as she ran up to the duo. "You two were amazing!"

"Can…. We…. Not… Run?" Clemont asked as he collapsed behind Bonnie.

"Oh brother…" Brock said as he facepalmed at Clemont. "Anyways, congratulations, specially on how amazing you two battled!"

"Wait what?" Ash and Serena asked perplexed.

"One of the battles that was featured was you two against some trainers with an Arcanine and Magnezone… Serena, where did you learn to battle like that?" Clemont asked as Serena sighed.

"Only from the best, am I right Serena?" Ash replied while pointing at himself and looking at the blushing Serena.

"You could put it that way…" Serena replied shyly.

"Anyways, I propose we get settled for the night as we will be staying here for the league itself," Brock said.

"I agree, it's settled then, let's get prepared for tomorrow where Ash has his opening match," Clemont replied.

Everyone else nodded agreeing.

 **A/N: Long chapter wow! I am expecting good and long Kalos League Chapters after all, and to be honest, I know that many things will be so much different.**

 **Next chapter we will get introduced to someone special… or that will be special to Ash… Yes, you can probably guess who she is! And no, she won't be shipped with him!**

 **Lmao, I introduce one dominant ship, there is no need to absolutely add unexpected drama to one of the most amazing arcs of the story. Anyways, I will be giving more context on the next chapter.**

 **I will be starting to put a "Kalos League Key" at the A/N so that you guys can understand some of the mechanics I implemented. I hope you guys enjoy these things as they will be amazing!... At least I hope.**

 **Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **ArmorshippingFan: As soon as the Kalos League Plot unveils itself, it is pretty awesome, thanks for reviewing!**

 **Guest 1: I will keep up the good work bro! Thanks for reviewing!**


	30. Chapter 30

**With Damian at the Trainer's Village:**

It was late at night, but people were still walking down the concrete walkways of the trainer's village. It was a large complex, but the stadium was closed for the day, it was probably in order to make sure that no one would go inside before the league began the next day. Anyways, Damian found himself going behind the stadium in a remote area where no one was. It was a dark alley way that the back of the stadium made with the other other side of one of the buildings. Damian looked at it and it was probably the pokemon center since there was a red pokeball on top which was common in most pokeballs. Damian looked down at his watch and through to himself, "Hey… Come on… where are they?"

"Damian?" Damian spun around to see a familiar face. It was actually the very same face that Damian knew from the last battle he had with Ash. The boy was one of Damian's closest goons, but the fact was that he was also registered to be one of the referees of the league. Damian knew he would want to take advantage of that, so he made sure he called him down.

"Rob… Dude, why did you take so long?" Damian asked the guy as he came closer.

"I was trying to find Nero, but I don't know where-"

"I'm here…" A boy said as he showed up behind Damian with crossed arms. The duo turned around to see who was talking to be met with a guy with a silver and red jacket. His undershirt was colored a dark bloody red and his hair was silver. The boy also had demonic red eyes as he bobbed a pokeball on his hand. "I had to get a pokeball from one of my associates over yonder in Castelia City."

"Unova?" Rob asked in shock as he looked at Nero.

Nero nodded, "Ye, Unova…" Nero then turned to Damian and said, "Some guy hooked me up with a pretty powerful Braviary. I am going to use him to get us to the top." Nero then looked at Rob and replied, "But you will help us get there I suppose…"

Rob nodded and looked at the two, "Yea, I am going to be allowing the use of illegal moves from your part, but we have to conceal it so that we don't get caught."

"Pppssshh," Damian said as he put his arm down. "There is no way that they will be able to talk back to referee." Damian then looked at Rob and said, "I am going to be using my Hydreigon to absolutely merk most people throughout the league, and I am definitely going to need some coverage if I have to resort to my secret weapon…" Damian then sighed, "No way that I am going to be defeated… and Nero, we will make it to the top together."

 **Not far away:**

Night was walking alone through the Trainer's Village with a smile on his face and his hands on his pockets. "I hope Leaf and Hunter are taking care of Jolteon alright… I can't believe that Eevee was so eager to play with him," Night told this to himself as he looked down and smiled as he then noticed the last person on the street go around the corner and into the pokemon center. "Welp, I am alone, I wonder what I can do…"

Night then turned around and looked at the skyline of Lumiose City with a smile. He thought it felt nice to not be called out for being the champion of the Soul stadium all the time. Regions like Tunod and even sometimes Johto would be where he is best known next to the archipelago he lives in.

Night suddenly felt a flash of light appear next to him and he turned almost immediately to see what it was. "Dueye…" A turquoise hooded owl shaped pokemon said as he looked at Night and then turned to look around the area.

"Huh? Decidueye, why are you out of your pokeball?" Night asked as he looked closer at the hooded owl.

"Dueye…" The grass and ghost type grunted as he pulled a vine string of his hoodie up and above his head and made a bow arc shape. Suddenly, Decidueye spawned in a purple arrow and launched it in the direction of a corner that was between the stadium and the pokemon center. Night looked at his pokemon and nodded as the two then began to approach the gap.

Night then reached the arrow and it dissipated into nothing as Night then shifted his gaze into the alley. Seeing that there was three people talking there, Night spoke up, "Hey! What is going on here?"

The three boys turned around and gritted their teeth at the sight of Night and then began to scramble out in the other direction and out the alley way. Night turned to Decidueye and nodded as the duo began to run towards the direction of the three boys. Suddenly, as they reached the opening they saw a large crowd of people roaming the streets and obviously the three people gone. Night then turned to Decidueye and said, "Look for them, report if you see them to me…"

"Dueye…" Decidueye nodded as he then flapped his wings behind Night and flew to the top of the alley way and over the stadium.

Night looked down at ground and asked himself: "What is going on here?"

 **A/N: Conspiracy going on already? Dang!**

 **I wonder what is the intention of Damian and my two new OCs Rob and Nero…? I don't like the sound of this xD!**

 **Anyways, today we get introduced to another very interesting character that is not an evil person. Yes, she is important to helping the story grow. Maybe I kind of adopted the idea from one of my favorite fics written by Nexxus… But I assure you guys that I will make sure that this will be symbolic. Remember that this person will also be special to Ash… but someone else will find her very special too… and remember one more thing too: Remember how Ash is a mashup of two characters? Can you use this to guess who this character is?**

 **Anyways, this will be an interesting chapter that will foreshadow some future events. Also, I hope that Decidueye will look stealthy in this for you guys. He is an awesome pokemon in my opinion. Have you guys ever ran a Decidueye with assault vest before? He can get just as tanky as a hydration and rain dance Goodra! I can take around two ice beams or flamethrowers or maybe even one blizzard or fire blast without getting to a dangerous level of health. And with sucker punch, I can clean up shop easily against some low health opponents. I even destroyed a Gengar using this strategy! Take a sludge bomb, use spirit shackle, use sucker punch… GG!**

 **Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

 **Disclaimer 2: Well… Let's say Diantha gets involved in a sexy situation… OK, I really wanted some eye candy, but maybe this will foreshadow the future of the entire fic.**

Chapter 30- Lonely girl, but hopeful future!

 **With Ash and the gang:**

"Wow there are so many stands with food and games!" Ash exclaimed with glistening eyes as he looked around the hexagonal shaped complex. He was in one of the large walkways for people to walk around that wrapped around the giant hexagonal shaped stadium. "I can barely wait to be able to go around and take advantage of all of these things!"

"Pika pika!"

"I say we eat out instead of me making food," Brock replied as he looked at some of the food stands that were ran by beautiful woman. "I want to ask some of those girls out!"

"Oh goodness me Brock," Serena replied with a snicker as she looked at the tanned man. Serena then whispered something that Brock still heard: "I wish a certain someone were just as pushy as that on me."

Brock inched closer to Serena and smirked as he whispered into Serena's ear, "Ash I suppose?" Serena instantly tensed up and felt her face get red as Brock's grin widened and he whispered: "Gotcha 'Mrs. Ketchum'." Serena instantly sighed at this and looked down with a large blush in her face. Brock moved back to be next to Clemont, but Bonnie came closer to Serena also smirking.

"Looks like someone else found out," Bonnie replied with a smile.

"Bonnie, dang it!" Serena whispered loudly as she picked up the pace and began to lead the group through the walkway. "Hey guys! How about we get our room key from the pokemon center up ahead so that we don't get left out without a room at the hotel they have here?"

"That sounds like a good idea Serena," Clemont remarked as he looked to his right to see the building with the large pokeball on it. "It would be beneficial for us to go check with Nurse Joy for the next available rooms, we could get them next to each other so that we would not need to walk throughout the entire complex."

"Clemont, you designed this place right?" Brock asked the lemon haired boy. "What is the arrangement for the entire complex?"

"Well," Clemont started as he raised a finger up to his glasses and adjusted the glare, "The stadium is in the middle of the hexagonal shaped complex. There is a slight slant due to the hill, but it really does make things work as we dug into the hill." Clemont then pointed to the pokemon center. "This pokemon center is at the back of the stadium, which would be the tallest point in the entire hill." Clemont then looked at the walkway which had many benches and street lamps that illuminated the street. People were walking down left and right trying to get to places and Clemont smiled, "The walkways are designed to loop around the stadium. We tried to keep them at close proximity and at a simple shape so that there is no confusion as to where to go."

"Wow Clemont," Ash said as he turned to the pokemon center. "This surely looks like it took a good amount of time to build."

"It did, two years to be exact," Clemont explained. "Up until last year, it was not even in a large city and it was called the Grand Conference…" Clemont then laughed. "They did feel like they needed to change the place though, so they gave Lumiose City the new privilege to host these tournaments."

"Big brother with his storytelling," Bonnie joked as she ran into the pokemon center. "We need to get settled then, come on!"

The group then walked into the pokemon center to find the lobby packed with trainers and their pokemon. Ash looked to his left and in the distance saw Calem standing there with Chesnaught. Ash looked at Calem and the jet black haired trainer met the raven haired trainer's gaze and nodded with a smile. Ash did the same and then Serena grabbed Ash's attention.

"Ash, I think participants get three free rooms," Serena said as she pulled on Ash's scarf. Ash then looked at the sign that said that participants can get two extra rooms for his guests. Ash smiled, as that was convenient.

"Sure, let's go talk with Nurse Joy," Ash said as he walked to the nurse that was handling the counter. Nurse Joy smiled as Ash closed in on her. "Hey Nurse Joy, I was wondering if we could have three free rooms please."

Nurse Joy smiled, "Sure thing Ash." Nurse Joy then reached down into the counted and pulled out three keys. "These keys are for rooms 300, 301, and 302 on the trainer's hotel that is on the southwest point of the village."

Ash smiled and looked at the keys in his hand, "Thanks so much, it really will be convenient."

"No problem," Nurse Joy replied with a smile. "Have a nice day!" With that, the group exited the pokemon center and began to make their way to the southwestern most part of the village. Up ahead the group saw the hotel as it towered over the village.

"There it is!" Ash said as he pointed. "Let's hurry up so we can go out to eat!"

"Right!" The others exclaimed in unison.

 **With Professor Sycamore:**

Professor Sycamore was walking around the trainer's village on the east side in the direction of the south. The professor then saw as a shadow flew through him making him look up at the buildings.

"Professor look!" A feminine voice exclaimed as Sycamore looked in the direction that was signaled. Professor Sycamore grew wide eyed as he saw that there was a hooded owl like blue pokemon staring down at the village in the night sky. Under the hood, two red eyes beamed and then the owl flew into another building. "That was so cool, what do you think Chespie?"

"Ches chespin!" A Chespin exclaimed.

Professor Sycamore looked down at the girl he was with. She was in a mostly green attire and had a cute green hat. She had pale skin and red hair that dangled in her face. Professor Sycamore remembered that she was seven years old and had strong amounts of depression bottled up inside of her. Professor Sycamore didn't know much of the details, but they include a fire…

Sycamore shook his head and smiled at the girl who had been showing life. Ever since Sycamore met her after the crisis, he had brought her back to life by bringing her close to Chespie, her Chespin. The girl was excited to finally go on an adventure and put everything behind her as she would be able to travel and do things, but there was one problem: Sycamore could not find someone to take care of her. He had to work on the lab and if she were to go on a journey she would be too young to be on her own.

"Hey Mairin," Professor Sycamore said making the girl turn to him. "How about we go get something to eat so that we can start watching the league together tomorrow!"

The girl, who was called Mairin looked at Professor Sycamore with bright eyes and smiled, "I can't wait to start seeing the battles! There are so many strong trainers!" Mairin then recalled something. "There is even this one guy that I heard is participating that jumped off of Prism Tower and had a pokemon capable of taking down a Darkrai!"

Professor Sycamore then smiled, "I know for a fact he will participate, in fact, I know he will probably do really well!"

"Wow really?!" Mairin asked with excitement before turning to Cheapie. "Hear that Chespie? That guy is participating!"

"Ches Chespin!" Chespin cried with excitement.

 **With Diantha (This is a nosebleeding part, so if you do not wish to get into sexy things then skip ahead):**

"Alright… we are close to being started tomorrow," Diantha announced as she looked out of the window of her suite towards the hexagonal shaped stadium. Diantha then heard a knock on the door. Diantha wondered who it was as she passed through the golden carpet and passed her large king sized bed to reach the door.

Diantha then grabbed the handle and turned the knob to then be surprised at who was in the door across from her. Diantha smiled and said, "Why hello there Lysandre."

The man with the orange mane in his appearance and a black suit smiled and replied with, "Hello there Diantha, I came here to discuss some of the preparations for the pokemon league."

"Sure… come in," Diantha replied as she looked at the man and signaled for him to get in. Diantha then noticed as Lysandre put a piece of paper on his back pocket which made Diantha get suspicious. "So what did you come here to discuss?"

"I actually came to discuss the fact that my personnel should be able to take some of the VIP spots of the Kalos League," Lysandre said seriously as he stared out the same window that Diantha was staring out of before. "I have been granted that access, but I also have some personnel which deserve their places."

"Personnel?" Diantha asked herself as she thought. Diantha then turned to Lysandre and asked, "Who would you like to include?"

"I only really need my colleague Xerocic to have a spot," Lysandre said with his hands behind his back. "I want him to be there watching some of the battles, probably the more important ones."

Diantha could not stop looking at the slip of paper on Lysandre's back pocket, but then turned to Lysandre and said, "As you wish Lysandre."

Lysandre then turned to Diantha and said, "I thank you very much Diantha… You know?" Lysandre then stopped and said, "Things in this world should be kept beautiful… This world should be kept beautiful." Lysandre then began to approach Diantha in a way that made her back up slowly. Lysandre smirked at this as Diantha hit the door behind her. "You know Diantha," Lysandre said as he put a hand on her cheek. "I wonder if you would be alright with giving me a moment?"

"Huh?" Diantha asked nervously as Lysandre leaned in and sealed the gap between the lips. Diantha went wide eyed to see Lysandre kissing her, but Diantha then saw her big chance to find out what that paper was about. With that, Diantha closed her eyes and leaned into the kiss completely kissing back. Lysandre seemed to get hungry as he added depth into the embrace with his tongue. Diantha did the same and the tongues battled for dominance inside their mouths. Diantha then reached for the back pocket and grabbed the piece of paper as she maintained the control of her lips on Lysandre's wet mouth. Diantha then slowly slipped the paper into her pocket as she parted the kiss with Lysandre.

Lysandre looked satisfied as he opened the door, "I guess I will be going then."

Diantha bowed to show her respect as she let Lysandre leave the suite. Diantha then closed the door behind Lysandre and with that she looked into her pocket and took out the slip of paper.

As she read the first line she went wide eyed…

"Team Flare…" Diantha said to herself in shock.

 **With Ash at the hotel:**

"So it would have to be the third floor," Clemont remarked as he looked at the keys… "Oh goodness me I was not expecting us to get good rooms already!"

"What do you mean by good rooms?" Brock asked. The elevator began to move upwards and Clemont adjusted his glasses.

"Participants get access to good rooms, and this is the hotel with the nicer suites," Clemont replied as the elevator came to a stop.

"Hey Clemont, are those our rooms right there?" Ash asked as he looked at the three doors numbered after the keys in front of him. The elevator opened up to a small circular area and in front of him to the left was 300, then in the center was 301, and at the end there was 302 in the right. They were the only rooms in the floor.

"I guess so," Serena replied as she walked off the elevator and towards the doors. "How should we divide ourselves?"

Brock turned to Ash and said, "Ash, you take a room for yourself."

"Huh?"

Clemont then turned to Ash and said, "Take 300, you and your pokemon could reflect there with some privacy and room to think."

"Pika…"

"Guys…" Ash replied. "Thanks." Ash then turned to the room with the 300 on it and used the key to open the door. "Wow, it looks amazing from here!"

"I want to sleep with Serena," Bonnie said as she hugged the honey blonde.

"Alright Bonnie," Serena replied as she returned the embrace.

"Alright then, Clemont and I will take 302 then," Brock said as he turned the key to his own room.

The trainers stepped into their rooms to be met with a large complex with two beds in the middle of the room and a small kitchen. There was a window that looked out to the stadium and Ash ran up to it with Pikachu to look out. Ash then noticed the stadium and smiled as he knew that was where his battles would be. Ash then looked around and noticed a video phone and even a television set. Ash then turned to Pikachu and said as he jumped on the bed closest to the door, "I will take this bed!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu shouted as he jumped on his own bed next to Ash.

This was obviously going to be a great place for Ash to relax during the league.

"Hey Ash!" A feminine voice interrupted the raven haired boy from his thoughts. Ash turned on his bed to see the honey blonde girl standing outside his door while shouting. "Let's go eat!"

"Alright Serena, get the others!" Ash exclaimed as he jumped out of bed. "Let's go Pikachu!"

"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed as he jumped on Ash's shoulder and went out the door.

The group went down the elevator and reached the outside of the hotel to then walk into the walkway where people were walking and talking in the night sky. It really was an enjoyable scene for the group to see people having fun with their pokemon.

"Ash!" Bonnie shouted as she pointed towards a stand with an apparent quiz on it. "Want to play that game?"

"Sure Bonnie, you can help me with it too!" Ash exclaimed as the duo then walked up to the game stand that had an attendant on it. Brock, Clemont and Serena then walked up next to Ash and Bonnie to see what was going on. The stand was titled "Things Every Pokemon Battler Should Know!". Ash looked to see that there was an attendant and Ash smiled as he looked at him. "Hey, I was wondering if I could play with my friend Bonnie here." Ash said as he pointed to Bonnie.

"Yea! I want to become a pokemon trainer when I am old enough to!" Bonnie exclaimed with a hyped up voice. Everyone else smiled and giggled at this while Bonnie blushed and said, "I guess it slipped."

"No problem, the instructions are simple, answer these questions and you will get a prize! If you get all of them right you can get free tickets for your entire group to go eat at PikaPizza right across from here," the attendant replied as he signaled to another stand that had many table in front and a large amount of people sitting and eating Pikachu faced Pizza.

"Awesome!" Ash exclaimed with glistening eyes. "Pikachu pizza." Ash then turned back to the attendant and exclaimed. "Give me your worst!"

The attendant smiled and replied with, "You only have to answer these five questions correctly, and since you are playing with Bonnie, the other three or that Pikachu can't help." Ash then shrugged his shoulders at Serena, Clemont and Brock who had some disappointed faces. "But, let's let the game begin!"

"Alright!"

"Let's start it easy," the attendant replied as he took out a remote on his hands and clicked on a button that made a monitor come down from the ceiling. The attendant then read the question that appeared: "Electric type moves have no effect on what typing?"

"Ooh ooh ooh I know!" Bonnie shouted as she jumped around. Ash and the clerk looked at Bonnie and the lemon haired girl replied with: "Ground."

"Well done Bonnie," the attendant said with a smile. "Next question." The clerk then switched up the question with the remote and read, "Is blast burn a physical, or special move?"

"Special," Bonnie replied with a shrug of shoulders. "Everyone knew that!"

The others stared at Bonnie with shocked expressions as the clerk praised Bonnie and switched up the question once more. The clerk then said, "Things may get a little harder now, so…" the attendant then read the question. "Dig is a move that makes you go underground for some time, but what is the way that you can make a pokemon get out of it?"

Bonnie just sighed, "you can expel a pokemon from underground by somehow shaking the earth… Using earthquake works, but sometimes if you are more creative like Ash here," Bonnie smirked as she pointed at Ash. "You can use iron tail on the battlefield and cause the same effect."

Clemont sighed knowing where the reference came from as Ash giggled while pointing at Bonnie and putting a finger up to his brain to show that she was probably very smart. The attendant nodded as Bonnie then turned to Ash and said, "I am leaving the last two questions up to you, Ash."

"Alright then," the attendant said as he signaled to Ash and read the next question. "If a water pulse was launched into the sky at approximately 45 degrees at a speed of 9.8 meters per second in the vertical component, how long would it take the water pulse to reach its target and what would be the final velocity of the water pulse… Pretend there is no air resistance."

Everyone looked at Ash with wide eyes knowing there was no way that the raven haired boy would be that intelligent…

"hmmm…" Ash wondered really fast as Bonnie shot a glare at Ash and Ash smiled with a hearty laugh. "Come on guys, you might not know it, but I can make these calculations very fast… I'm a battler of all things." Ash then looked at the clerk and said, "The arc is symmetrical and since the acceleration due to gravity would be exactly 9.8 meters per second squared, then it would take one second for the water pulse to reach its highest point, which meant the target would be hit in two seconds, and the final velocity is equal to the initial velocity, so we have to look at the sine of 45 and do 9.8 divided by the sine of 45… so the answer is exactly 9.8/sin45 which comes out to be approximately…" Ash then put his finger on his chin as he did the calculation by brain and said: "13.86 meters per second."

The clerk looked stunned by the answer as he responded: "correct…" The attendant then flashed the last question and said, "Now tell me Ash, if you ever battled against an Aegislash, what would be its weak spot?"

"Weak spot?" Ash wondered deep in thought as he thought about the anatomy of an Aegislash. "That's it!" Ash then smirked and said, "Since Aegislash cannot use king's shield in its attack form, one would need to prevent it from moving… so getting the sword stuck in between both shield and blade form would make it a sitting duck!"

"C-correct," the clerk replied as the stand then gave off streamers.

"Ash that was amazing!" Bonnie cheered.

"Pika pika!"

"Oh man," Ash replied as he rubbed the back of his head and looked at Clemont who looked like Ash had just aced physics easier than him. "Did I do alright Clemont?"

"That was…" Clemont started as he adjusted his glasses and smirked. "The most extraordinary thing I have ever seen you say, Ash."

"Well now we have a genius in the house…" Brock teased.

"Pppssshh," Serena teased while putting her hand down as she scooted next to Ash and said to him. "Think you're so smart? Tell me what is 1/(b-a) (F(a) - F(b))," Serena quizzed the raven haired boy.

"Uhhhh…"

"What is the Mean Value Theorem?" Serena joked as she put her hands behind her back. "Anyways Ash, that solving of two dimensional kinematics was impressive," Serena replied with a wink.

"Anyways," the attendant said with a smile as he handed Bonnie the tickets. "Enjoy yourselves some free PikaPizza!"

"Thanks so much!" Everyone in the gang replied.

And who would complain… It was the best pizza Ash had ever tasted on his life!

 **With Night:**

"Decidueye…" Decidueye said as he landed next to Night.

"Alright Decidueye, we will find them some other time," Night replied as he recalled his hooded owl. Night then looked on at the walkway and said, "I don't like this… not one bit…"

 **A/N: Mairin? Underlying plot? Ash can do physics and Serena can do calculus? What the hell is going on here?**

 **Wait…**

 **LYSANDRE AND DIANTHA KISSED?!**

 **Yes… huge plot twist I know… but this is all probably needed for the future, except maybe the physics and calculus… that was just to add some color to the characters.**

 **Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed! And thank you guys so much for so many views and reviews, I am just so tired today that I didn't respond, but know I still read what you guys say and I will respond next time!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**


	31. Chapter 31

**The Kalos League Stadium:**

The sky was bright and sunny, the hexagonal stadium was packed. The many rows and rows of seats in the giant stadium were filled with people aligning throughout the Pokemon stadium. The people all cheered as they watched the colorful stadium give out its hexagonal lights and flashing colors with the symbol of the Kalos League.

" **Swwooooshh!"** Jets flew over everyone causing their attention to look upwards at the sky as the amazing air show caused the wind to brush through the stadium as Ash's scarf lightly waved. There was also reporter helicopters flying overhead causing some humming sounds, but in the end, the sound was inundated by the power of the cheers by the full stadium.

"This is it Pikachu," Ash said as he turned to his right shoulder to see Pikachu there cooing to Ash's petting. Ash looked over at the scoreboard which had a hexagonal shape in the slots that displayed the trainer's name and the pokemon. Ash then turned to the right to see the hexagonal screen flashing the matchups:

 **Hunter vs Treck**

 **Satoshi vs Harvey**

 **Ash vs Astrid**

Ash smiled as he saw his name next to Astrid. He remembered her from the masterclass, but also from a battle he had in the past. Before then, Ash's Grovyle got completely obliterated by her mega Absol. Ash smiled as he reached down at his belt and felt Sceptile's pokeball. 'Sceptile, you are my go-to in this battle!' Ash thought as he smirked down at the field.

Ash then looked to his left to see that Calem was next to him smiling down as well. Ash and Calem had met up to watch together as the battles happened and Ash was extremely hyped up.

"I can't believe the stadium I designed is a reality, I can't believe I am sitting on my own creation!" Clemont exclaimed as he was shaking with excitement in his seat.

"Yea yea," Bonnie joked as he patted Clemont's back. Brock did the same trying to calm down the inventor. They did not expect him to be this hyped.

Ash looked to his right to see the honey blonde looking down at the stadium with a smile. Serena's hair gently waved around with her fedora and Ash was mesmerized a little by this. Ash could see the excitement and strength radiating from her as he was sitting next to her. It was a pleasant feeling for Ash. Serena then turned to Ash and brown eyes met blue eyes. "Ash… I am so excited," Serena said with a shaking attitude similar to Clemonts.

Ash smiled and put a hand over hers, "You better be!" Serena blushed at this as she turned to see Ash as he pumped his other hand to a fist. "I am going to be knocking everyone's socks off, just wait!"

Serena blushed and looked back down at the field with more relaxation than before as Ash retreated his hand from her. Ash then looked down at the field as well and smiled as he saw the center of the field be completely filled with a laser light show that portrayed pokemon and humans. At the same time, Ash could not help but also shake himself as he saw the lasers battle, he couldn't wait to battle himself!

The crowd roared at this and Ash could feel as if his ears were on fire because of how loud the public was. Ash looked around and noticed that there was so many people, hundreds of thousands to be exact. While looking to his right and upward he saw that there was a small exit from the stands. They led out to the dug outs. Ash figured that whoever that Hunter or Treck guy was, they were probably already at the dug outs ready to begin.

The hype was real as Ash looked onto the platform up ahead and noticed that Diantha was coming up towards the platform in front of everyone. She then stepped up to the microphone as she looked onto the stadium with excitement in her eyes. She then opened up her mouth and began to speak:

"Welcome, everyone from Kalos and from all over the world if you are watching this on television!" Diantha said with a smile in her face as the crowd roared once more in her respect. Diantha then turned to her left to be met with Professor Sycamore carrying something that radiated to the entire stadium. Everyone cheered at this as Diantha was handed the torch. "This," Diantha started as she raised the flame into the sky. "This is the sacred flame of the legendary pokemon Ho-oh!"

Ash smiled as he witnessed a large torch like figure appear behind Diantha and tower around her size, but for the entire crowd, it was visible. Diantha then raised the torch and said, "With my power granted to me by the pokemon league, I declare that the league begins!" Diantha then threw the torch with Ho-oh's flame into the larger light and with that, the entire top of the candle lit into flames making everyone cheer and clap at the sight.

Serena looked to her left to see Ash clapping with a genuine smile in his face. Serena saw how Ash's scarf slightly waved, and how his Z marks in his cheeks gave a slight intimidating look. Serena blushed and looked back at the flame with a hand over her ribbon…

"Ash… your biggest challenge begins here, but I will make sure you make it," Serena whispered to herself.

 **A/N: Kalos League is now in session as everyone is getting ready to begin the actual battles.**

 **I do want to warn that the battles in this chapter may be a little fast, but trust me, they will get better in the next couple of chapters. Anyways, this time we get introduced to how the system will work out for the league and you guys will see some of the stuff that I have been working on to make this league amazing!**

 **I also want to reflect on as to why I made Ash go against Astrid like in the anime… Well, I wanted to add a female to be Ash's opponent. Thing is that as I planned out the league, I forgot to give Ash a female opponent, and since I didn't know who to put in the first round, I decided to put Astrid since she is known to be a powerful trainer.**

 **Also, this will be a mysterious chapter for Ash as he gets to see two other people battle before him… Let's just say that one of them is obviously someone that Ash would have dreaded to go up against (his father obviously).**

 **Anyways, let's begin the battles! I have a feeling that things will kick off very well, and I am so excited to be writing this for you guys!**

 **Before I forget! I will be copy and pasting the same key before every Kalos League battle chapter so you guys can understand some of the stuff that I have developed. I feel like these things may submerge you more into the battle sequence!**

 **So here it is:**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Excited?**

Thought so…

 **So let's get right into it shall we?**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 31- A Powerful Start to a Long Journey!

 **At the stands:**

Ash was psyched from the lighting of the torch. After all, he had always dreamed of being here to experience every second of it. Obviously, as Ash looked at his friends, he had always wondered how he would perform in front of them. Despite them seeing Ash lose at times, they all knew that Ash was very capable of his battling style, and it took a good opponent to be able to put up a challenge. Ash smiled as he looked down at the field as the instructions were announced:

" _Welcome to the Lumiose Conference! We will now begin our first matches!"_

The crowd roared at this and Ash could not believe this was happening as he clenched his fists in excitement.

" _The first match will be a 3 on 3 battle on the same battlefield! The second will be a surprise battle format with a random field. Rounds three and four will be a 3 on 3 in a random battlefield with the exception that anyone that makes it past the fourth round will be awarded 200k in Kaleuros!"_

The crowd roared at this as Ash looked at the dugouts. There were two trainers coming, one from the left and one from the right. One was a boy with jet black hair and a green vest with emerald jacket, notably, there was an Eevee on his shoulder with a large smirk on his face. The other was a boy that had an amazingly giant cape coming around his back and a dragon master-like suit. He looked like a little boy to Ash and he could not help, but sigh as he saw this.

" _To make the battles more interesting, we have included built in microphones to the trainer's platform so that anyone can hear the attacks that anyone calls out… and specially the interactions between the trainers."_

"So, it seems that I will begin here, I won't lose that's for sure!" the boy with the green attire said as he stepped up to the trainer platform and his Eevee jumped down from his shoulder and stood next to him.

" _And that everyone! Is trainer Hunter!"_

The crowd roared as everyone watched the second trainer walk up to his platform.

"Oh my goodness!" The small boy replied as he looked around. He then began to wave around the stadium. "I'm on TV! Hi mom! Hi dad! Hey Lori!" The boy then stepped into his trainer platform and tripped on his scarf causing him to fall on the ground on his face.

" _And that is Treck! Let's get this battle started!"_

The crowd roared as the opening match would start. Obviously, the crowd did have a little bit of amusement with how Treck acted, but in the end, Ash noticed the crowd treated him like a normal human.

Serena looked at Treck and smiled, "Well, at least he is a very adorable kid to be starting out his journey."

Ash looked at Serena and sighed, "Yea, he looks like he really has a positive attitude, I really am liking this matchup already."

 **At the Battle:**

"So, what are you bringing to the trainer, Treck?" Hunter asked with a smirk as he looked at his opponent ahead of him through the dark abyss that separated the trainers.

"Only the strongest I got," Treck replied with a smile as both trainers looked at the large gap awaiting for an arena to come up. Suddenly, a very smooth transition brought up an arena shaped like an oval that included rocks in the middle, but very minimal obstacles for the two trainers.

" _So this battle will be played out in a flat rock field!"_

The referee then extended his hand and looked at the two trainers while explaining, "This will be a 3 on 3 pokemon battle. Substitutions are allowed and the battle will be over as soon as all of the pokemon on either side are unable to continue." The referee then put his arm into the sky and exclaimed, "Choose your first pokemon!"

Hunter put his hand out palm down and exclaimed, "Eevee, you are up first!"

"Eevee!" Eevee exclaimed as he hopped from the trainer's platform and into the ricky field. Eevee smirked and eyed his opponent as he burrowed his paws into the ground preparing for anything.

" _So Hunter leads with Eevee, who will Treck lead with?"_

Treck reached into his belt and shouted, "Golem you will be my first pokemon!" Treck then threw a pokeball which opened to make a Golem land on the field in front of him with a bang.

"GOLEM!" The large ground and rock type exclaimed as he stared down his little opponent.

" _So Treck leads with a powerful Golem! Amazing!"_

The scoreboard then updated so that both pokemon were displayed and their trainers:

 **Hunter:** (pokeball) (pokeball) **Eevee**

 **Treck:** (pokeball) (pokeball) **Golem**

The referee then put his arm out and shouted, "Let the battle!...

BEGIN!"

 **Battle music begin! Hunter (Eevee) vs Treck (Golem):**

"Let's start this off Golem! Use hyper beam!" Treck commanded while putting out his arm. Golem obeyed as he summoned a dark and draconic beam in front of him. Suddenly, Golem let the beam go in the direction of the observing Eevee as Hunter maintained his composure at the battle.

"Dodge it Eevee!" Hunter exclaimed as he put his fist out. Eevee nodded and quickly followed orders given to him. Eevee dodged to the left and then landed on his feet with a smile. Hunter then went for a counterattack, "Use shadow ball!" Eevee suddenly made himself grow a dark shadowy ball in front of him as he then reeled back his head and shot the ball at Golem. Golem was so big that Treck was unable to call for it to dodge and Golem got struck right in the head without a problem.

"Grrr…" Treck grunted as he clenched his teeth. "Golem are you alright?" Golem shook off the pain and got back up to be at a fighting stance towards Eevee. "Good, now use rock blast!"

"Gol… EM!" shoots a rock at Eevee.

"Eevee…" Dodges the rock by jumping over it. The rock then smashes in front of Hunter.

"Em!" shoots another rock at Eevee.

"Vee…" Dodges the rock again and it slams into the ground in front of the rock.

"EM EM EM!" shoots three consecutive rocks at Eevee.

"Dodge them all!" Hunter exclaims as he pumps his fist. Eevee began to jump around as he dodged the attacks until the last one of the rocks was in the way. Hunter saw this and exclaimed, "Use iron tail in order to swing the rock away!" Eevee made his tail glow white and then swung it around at the right moment to make the rock get smashed against the tail. The rock then got launched back towards Golem and Treck saw this as a moment to defend.

"Rock blast to destroy it!"

"Gol… EM!" Golem exclaimed as he shot the rock in the direction of the incoming rock. Both rocks closed the gap and in the end there was an explosion in the middle of the field.

"Not bad," Hunter said as he smirked.

" _What an amazing exchange of attacks! Who knew our opening match would be this intense?!"_

 **At the stands:**

Night was sitting with Jolteon next to Leaf. "Hunter is in a good spot," Night said as he looked at the battle.

"Huh?" Leaf asked as she looked at Night. "How can you be so sure? I am stressing out like crazy right here." Leaf then clenched her fists and said, "I want him to win so badly… But Golem is strong."

Night just crossed his arms and said, "Relax, look at how Hunter is battling." Night then pointed to Hunter as he got Eevee to land another Shadow Ball on Golem. "He is avoiding the attacks to get ahead of his competition… he is in the advantage here."

Leaf relaxed a little, but still had a worried expression, "Come on Hunter."

 **Back at the battle:**

"Use rock blast once more!" Treck exclaimed as he put his hands out. Hunter was patient as he saw how Golem formed a rock between his hands and attempted to launch it at Eevee.

Hunter then saw the opening he needed, "Eevee use Shadow Ball to counter the rock blast!"

"Eeeee….VEEEEE!" Eevee exclaimed as he formed a black and purple ball of energy in front of his mouth to then expel towards the Golem. The gap closed between both moves, and when that happened, there was an explosion in the middle of the field. Suddenly, the shards from the rocks flew outward and hit the Golem since the rocks were closest to Golem at the time of the collision.

" _What an amazing way to still damage Golem! What can Treck even do?!"_

"Use iron tail!" Hunter exclaimed as he put his hand out. Eevee charged up his white glowing tail and then jumped into the air with great speed. Suddenly, as Eevee got closer to Golem, Eevee swung his tail around and from that was able to create a strong slam on top of Golem that made a small explosion of dust pick up. When the dust cleared, Golem was shown near Treck on the ground.

"Are you alright Golem?" Treck asked with huge worry on his face. Golem stood up slowly, but was barely able to move. Treck then made a move knowing that it was now or never. "Use!" Treck then put his arms out in a violent manner. "EXPLOSION!"

Hunter and Eevee flinched as they saw this move knowing that things might not go their way with it.

"Go…" Golem began to glow orange and yellow as streaks of light appeared from Golem. "LEMMMM!" The rock and ground type screeched as he made the explosion begin to consume most of the arena.

"Eevee!" Hunter exclaimed through gritted teeth. "Use protect!"

"Eeeeeeee… VEEEEEEEEE!" Eevee exclaimed as he formed the turquoise shield in front of himself as the large shock wave was approaching. Eevee strained as the shockwave caused a large amount of dust to fly through the entire arena completely over Eevee and his shield. When the smoke cleared, Eevee was still shown on his shield and slowly, Eevee made it disappear into thin air as Eevee looked at his opponent. Eevee then smiled along with Hunter at what happened.

The ref raised his hand as he said, "Golem is unable to battle, Eevee wins!"

" _And Golem takes itself out, but due to quick thinking, it was ineffective for Treck!"_

The crowd roared as Treck recalled Golem back into his pokeball and the scoreboard portrayed that Golem was unable to battle. Nobody had expected such a risky battle style to come out with that risk.

 **At the stands:**

"Told ya!" Night replied.

"Jol Jolteon!" Jolteon exclaimed in his trainer's lap. He enjoyed watching his Eevee friend perform well in battles and this was no exception.

"Well done Hunter," Leaf said as she looked down at the battle.

A few rows to the right, Ash stared with a smile, "That was very unpredictable, right Pikachu?"

"Pika pika!"

"I did not expect him to use protect at the last second," Calem shrugged. "Genius move from his part if you ask me."

"I agree," Clemont said as he looked ahead at the battle. "It was not the best idea to use explosion right off the bat like that, not smart indeed…"

"We will have to see what the other pokemon that Treck has can bring," Brock said as he crossed his arms. "It is still too early to tell."

"Oh man, boys talking everything about the battles," Shauna sighed as she looked over at Serena.

"Yeah, I guess it's funny," Serena replied with a smile.

"What about when Ash battles, aren't you just like them?" Shauna taunted at a voice Ash couldn't here.

"Shauna…" Serena grunted in frustration.

 **Back at the battle:**

"Eevee that was awesome!" Hunter exclaimed as Eevee came back to his trainer. "You want to keep going Eevee?"

"Eevee!" Eevee nodded as he turned back to the rocky field and stood in front of Treck ready to battle.

" _So who will Treck go with next?"_

Treck smiled as he looked back into his belt and said, "I guess I will go with you!" Treck then unclipped a pokeball from his belt and shouted. "Go Galvantula!" As he threw the pokeball, a bright flash of light occurred which materialized into a yellow arachnid like pokemon that stood in front of Eevee. Treck then made the first move as he decided to try and trap Eevee, "Use electroweb!" Galvantula then shot out a crackling wave of silk that went outwards towards Eevee. It then surrounded Eevee and before Hunter knew it, Eevee was being shocked just by touching the string.

"Eevee…" Hunter grunted as he saw his friend struggling. "That's it!" Hunter then put his hand out palm up and exclaimed, "Use iron tail to conduct the electricity. Eevee made his tail glow white and then Eevee made it touch the silk. The web then began to stop crackling as the electricity slowly disappeared and the iron tail absorbed the electricity. "Now Eevee, use the iron tail to cut through the web!"

"Eee…. Vee vee vee!" Eevee exclaimed as he swung around and around to get himself unstuck from the web. The iron tail then made the web useless and Eevee was back out in front of his trainer unharmed.

" _And Hunter uses a creative method to free Eevee… What a fascinating battler!"_

"Grrr…" Treck grunter as he looked at the field. "Use bug buzz, make sure that the sound is strong!"

Hunter flinched as he witnessed Galvantula make screeching sound waves that were hurting Eevee and immobilizing the latter from moving. Hunter then did the best move he could go with in this situation, "Use protect!" Eevee strained a little through the bug buzz, but then put out a turquoise shield that made Eevee be able to relax inside the protect. Treck smiled at this as he saw how Eevee was being a very strong challenge.

" _What a persistent Eevee! I have never seen anything like it!"_

"Eevee, finish this with hyper beam!" Hunter exclaimed while throwing his fist.

"WHAT?!" Treck exclaimed in shock as he heard the attack being commanded.

"Eeeeeeee….. VEEEEEEEEE!" Eevee exclaimed as he made a ball of dark purple and black energy appear in front of him and then launching it at all speed at Galvantula. Galvantula was still in a moment of shock as the attack collided and caused a large explosion at the other side of the field. Galvantula then tried to get back up, but instead the spider pokemon smiled at Eevee before collapsing on its legs and losing consciousness.

"Galvantula no!" Treck exclaimed as he saw his electric spider collapse.

"Galvantula is unable to battle! Eevee wins!" The ref declared with an extended arm.

" _Amazing! How can an Eevee learn such an attack?"_

"Galvantula return!" Treck shouted as he recalled Galvantula back into his pokeball. Treck then pulled out his last pokeball and exclaimed. "This is it! Go Poliwrath!"

"Poli poliwrath!" the water fighting type exclaimed as he came out of his pokeball and looked at Eevee with a smirk.

" _So Treck with attempt to win with a Poliwrath! How will things go?!"_

"A Poliwrath, huh?" Hunter asked himself. Hunter then turned to his panting pokemon "Eevee, why don't you take a break? You battled really well."

Eevee ran up to Hunter and Hunter gave him a little pet in the fur before turning to his opponent and reaching into his belt, "Electivire let's go!" Hunter then chucked the pokeball to materialize into the electric type that had two large tails that crackled with electricity behind him. He made a large battle cry as he looked at Poliwrath.

" _And Hunter makes a small change! How will this go now that he gained the type advantage?!"_

Hunter looked at the scoreboard to then notice that it was updated with the current events of the battle:

 **Hunter:** (pokeball) Eevee **Electivire**

 **Treck:** _Golem Galvantula_ **Poliwrath**

 **At the stands:**

Night smiled down at the battle, "Yup, this is as good as finished."

"Why are you so confident?" Leaf teased as she slumped down on her chair. "Last time you said that was when you tried to impress a girl and you thought you could round up the trick before you fell flat on the ground."

"What? Hey come on!" Night replied with an obvious blush. "It was Infernape that was using flare blitz nearby and the treadmill I was running on was at the edge of catching fire until I actually performed the trick and Infernape looked at me to make the treadmill catch ablaze…" Night then crossed his arms and said, "Don't worry, I got plenty of fish in the sea… maybe a Kalosian girl will think I am cute." Night remarked this last part with glistening eyes.

"What is so special about Kalosian girls?" Leaf asked.

"Hehe, I don't know, what about you falling for the Johto trainers despite being from Kanto?" Night asked Leaf with a smirk. Leaf quirked an eyebrow until Night signaled his head in the direction of Hunter. At this Leaf blushed and Night raised his eyebrows in a smirk. "Gotcha Leaf."

"Don't tell him Night!" Leaf exclaimed with a furious blush.

"Why should I?" Night replied with a smile. "It wouldn't be fun for you that way."

Ash's group was amazed at Hunter's battling.

"Hyper beam on an Eevee, how is that possible?" Clemont asked.

"Breeding…" Brock replied. "Sometimes breeding gives you the craziest combinations… like a flamethrower Serperior…"

"So he got lucky with the draw huh?" Ash asked.

"I think he did," Brock replied. "From my experience as a pokemon breeder, I know that breeding can make pokemon more competitively viable, that is probably what Hunter has, as well trained and bred Eevee… No doubt that Electivire will probably be as powerful!"

 **Back at the Battle:**

"Electivire use thunderpunch!" Hunter exclaimed with a pumped fist.

"Electivire… VIRE!" Electivire shouted as he made his fist crackle in electricity and then lunged at the Poliwrath.

"Focus punch!"

"Poli… WRATH!" Poliwrath exclaimed as he formed a white fist and charged Electivire.

The gap between the attacks closed and the two pokemon were left in a stalemate as the two attacks struggled to go through. Suddenly, Poliwrath got consumed in yellow electric sparks meaning that it had been paralyzed by the thunderpunch and then the sparks caused Poliwrath to get hit hard with the thunderpunch as the focus punch could not over power. Treck gritted his teeth as he saw this. It was definitely not good. "Hydro pump!" Treck exclaimed.

"Thunder!" Hunter shouted back with intensity.

The two pokemon charged up their attack and then launched them at each other. Both attacks collided in the middle of the rocky arena and both trainers gritted their teeth. Suddenly, the beam of yellow electricity bolted through the jet of water and struck the Poliwrath straight in the chest.

"Poliwrath no!" Treck shouted as he witnessed Poliwrath fall in front of him completely unable to battle.

"Poliwrath is unable to battle! This means that the win goes to Hunter from Cherrygrove City!" The referee exclaimed.

" _What a way to finish the battle! Hunter emerged victorious and will be going onto the next round."_

The crowd cheered as they saw as Hunter's face came up above the world "winner" in the scoreboard.

Both trainers recalled their pokemon as Treck suddenly spoke up, "Hunter, you are really good, best of luck."

"Thanks Treck, I will be looking forward to battling you again sometime," Hunter replied with a smile as both trainers then retreated through their dugouts out of the arena. The arena stayed though as it would be used for all of the battles of the first round.

 **At the stands:**

"Well done Hunter!" Night and Leaf exclaimed in unison as they saw Hunter walk out of the arena.

Ash was smiling down, "That Hunter guy is really strong, maybe I will get to battle him later on. What do you think Pikachu?"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu exclaimed in an excited tone.

"Alright, so the next battle includes Satoshi and Harvey, I can't wait for this!" Calem exclaimed.

Ash then felt as the crowd roared when they saw as the two dugouts now had two more trainers coming down them. On the left was a trainer with brown hair and a light tan. He seemed like a decent trainer as he also had some clothes that made him seem intimidating. Looking to the right, Ash flinched as he saw the hooded man from before walking down the hallway and into the trainer box.

Ash then heard the dialogue: "I came here to win, so prepare to lose!"

" _And we have a declaration from Harvey! What will be Satoshi's reaction?"_

Ash looked as the trainer called Satoshi just smirked under hood and said, "Stubborn as most trainers…"

The crowd roared as they heard this trash talking. This was obviously the start of probably the largest form of amusement for the crowd.

Ash though, he worriedly stared down the cloaked man. Something seemed odd about him.

 **At the battle:**

The field that separated the two trainers was very rocky and through this, Harvey smirked. "You know I am an expert of ground type pokemon, you are in so much trouble right now."

"..." Ashura said nothing as his cloaked eyes stared down his opponent. 'He seems to have strength, but he has no character or passion… he is just as solid as his ground types…' Ashura thought as he saw this.

The referee then put his arms out and said the same instruction as always. Ashura just slightly yawned since he did not want to hear it at all, but Harvey treated it like a serious battle after all, so he decided to act like if he was serious. "Now choose your first pokemon!"

"Aegislash let's go!" Ashura shouted without problem as he tossed a pokeball and exposed a little bit of he his attire during the swing, but it was still impossible to make out Ashura's identity. The pokeball opened and it showed the Aegislash that was in blade form instead of shield form.

" _So it seems that Satoshi leads with an Aegislash!"_

"Go!" Harvey shouted as he threw a pokeball. The pokeball opened to reveal a Rhyperior. Ashura smirked as he saw the giant pokemon land in front of his "Aegislash" with a large battle cry.

" _Rhyperior against Aegislash, this is exciting!"_

The crowd roared as they were getting ready to witness the next battle.

 **At the Stands:**

Hunter was sitting next to Leaf and he was staring down Ashura with extreme interest.

"What is up Hunter?" Leaf asked.

"It's him…" Hunter just stated. Leaf gave him a confused look and Hunter replied with: "He is that guy that I had to face at the Indigo League. The guy that swept me…"

Ash was gritting his teeth in confusion as he saw the matchup. Serena noticed this and turned to Ash and gave him a shy smile, "Ash are you alright?"

Ash was snapped out of his thoughts as he looked at Serena's blue eyes with a confused expression and said, "Nothing… Just my imagination." Serena then forced a smile and nodded as she looked back down. Ash then felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around to see Calem with the same confused expression.

"You see it too, right?" Calem asked.

"Yeah…" Ash said as he sighed in disbelief and turned back down to the battle, "Please tell me that I am not looking at an Aegislash that acts like shield form does not exist."

Calem nodded and looked back down at the field with a confused expression on his face.

 **Back at the battle:**

"Let the battle…

BEGIN!"

 **Battle music begin! Harvey (Rhyperior) vs Ashura (Aegislash):**

"Flamethrower…" Ashura just said in a bored tone of voice as he crossed his arms. Aegislash just fired off a barrage of flames that interacted elegantly with the air before smashing into the Rhyperior causing the rhynosaucerous pokemon to put its hands in front of himself in an attempt to prevent too much damage.

"Flamethrower?" Harvey asked in disbelief. "How?!"

" _A flamethrower Aegislash, amazing!"_

The crowd roared as they saw this happen and then Ashura just smirked. "Had enough?"

"No! Use stone edge!" Rhyperior then began to punch the rocky battlefield in order for a barrage of rocks to shoot out of the ground in an attempt to smash into the Aegislash.

"Too slow…" Ashura taunted as he then said, "Dodge by jumping and then go into night slash!"

"Zora…" Aegislash shouted as the blade pokemon then flew into the sky as if gravity had effect on him and then made his blade glow all purple. "ROARK!" Aegislash exclaimed as he slammed his purple blade into the Rhyperior and made the larger and towering pokemon fall back and get slammed into the ground in pain to not get up.

"Rhyperior is unable to battle," the ref exclaimed. "Aegislash wins."

 **In the stands:**

"That is not an Aegislash… it has to be something else…" Ash then took out his Pokedex and started scanning through all of the pokemon he had seen before. He scanned the Aegislash, but what came up was not Aegislash at all, but a fox like pokemon named Zoroark. "So it was something else after all…"

"Ash?" Ash turned his gaze to see some shining blue eyes looking at him with fire in them. "You should get going! Your match is next!" Serena exclaimed as she pumped both of her fists.

Ash's eyes widened as he smirked and looked back at Serena while saying, "Yea!" Ash then stood up as Pikachu tried to hop on Ash's shoulder to be stopped. Ash gently put Pikachu on Serena's lap and the honey blonde looked perplexed by this.

"Pika?" Pikachu asked in confusion.

"Don't worry Pikachu," Ash said with a smile. "You helped Serena and me out for the Victory Road, so take a good rest… and Serena." Ash said as he turned his gaze to Serena's eyes. "Take good care of Pikachu as I battle."

Serena smiled and said, "Just leave it to me!"

Ash smiled and then made his way towards the exit of the stands. "Good luck Ash, win it for us!" Serena exclaimed.

"Remember our promise Ash," Calem replied.

"Go get them Ash!" Shauna said.

"Win! That is all…" Clemont and Brock replied with smirks.

"And make sure that you can give it your all," Bonnie replied with a smile. "Remember how to do physics."

"Pikapi Pikachu!"

Ash smiled at everyone and said: "I will!"

Just as Ash was going up the stairs, he looked back to look at the battle's progress:

 **Harvey:** _Rhyperior Stunfisk_ **Whiscash**

 **Satoshi:** (pokeball) (pokeball) **Aegislash**

Ash took a serious look at the cloaked man and then turned back up the stairs and into the exit of the stands… _Feeling only two pokeballs on his belt._

 **Ash POV:**

I am walking through the hexagonal hallways. I swear everything in this entire stadium is shaped like a hexagon. I don't even know why. Anyways, I see that I am supposed to enter through the same dug out that Satoshi entered through since my name is displayed in some monitors to go that direction.

I followed the signs until I found an opening that looked like a tunnel. I looked forward and I see that there is light at the end of the tunnel.

From here I could hear the crowd cheering and a large explosion. I could barely see by the difference in lighting, but I heard the announcer say something as I edged nearer towards the tunnel. No doubt it was the dugout that lead to the field I was battling in. I could not wait to face Astrid again and show her how strong you are.

"I would be surprised if you even made it past the first round," I spin around to see Damian next to me. He is looking out the same way I was and he then told me, "Don't get too excited, if no one takes you out, then I will… Or that guy that is battling right now." Damian smirked that at me as he walked past me and bumped shoulders with me and walks away.

I take a deep breath as I take the advice that Bonnie gave me about knowing physics. "Thanks for the angular momentum Damian…" I whisper to myself as I hear footsteps come my way and I see the cloaked man come down from the tunnel towards me.

I flinched as he came next to me. I stare in intimidation as he walked by me and stopped in front of me, "Kid, know what pokemon I was just using?" I hear the man's voice. I could have sworn I have heard that voice a million times in my life.

I went wide eyed at the question and stood up straight while responding with: "You were using a Zoroark…"

I saw how the man smirked in the shadow that covered his face and said, "You better not lose… you might actually stand a chance." With that the man began to walk away leaving me with a confused expression.

I shake it off as I look at the tunnel and begin walking towards the direction of the cheers. I near the light and as I step closer, I grab the glove with my keystone and tightened it around my hand. With that, I stepped into the light to have a breeze make my scarf wave and my vision went completely white.

" _Ash!"_

I hear my name get announced as my vision materializes itself. I see the very details of the stadium from the cheering people to the torch with the flame top my right and I even see the many hexagons lighting up the stadium's dark spots. I look to my right and see my face in the scoreboard as I smile:

 **Ash:** (pokeball) (pokeball) **(pokeball)**

 **Astrid:** (pokeball) (pokeball) **(pokeball)**

I can barely hold my excitement as I throw my fist into the air and announce to everyone, "I'm Ash Ketchum from Lumiose City! I come to become champion… and become a POKEMON MASTER!"

" _And there we have it! A declaration of victory! Keep in mind that it is rumored that Ash is the guy with the Sceptile that defeated the Darkrai at an unknown location… We may have a star trainer right here."_

At this the crowd cheered in approval.

 **At the stands:**

Ashura leaned in from the stadium and looked at Ash with a smirk at hearing the "Darkrai" part get announced.

Hunter was just looking at the field with confusion, "That guy just claimed he won the whole thing before he even did anything…"

"Oh man, this Ash guy really looks like a younger version of myself as I took on the Tunod league. I swear I declared victory before even battling," Night said with a sheepish laugh.

"How did that go?" Leaf asked with a pout.

"Well… I actually won!"

"Jolteon teon!"

"Wow, I now wish I did that," Hunter said with anime tears.

Hau was looking down at the battle with a serious face, and specifically Ash. "Sorry Ash, but if you get in my way before the 200k, I will have to defeat you…"

The gang was laughing with great amounts of fun at hearing Ash's declaration, but one person in particular had a different reaction:

Serena gripped her ribbon and blushed as she looked down at Ash, "And you will Ash… I know so!"

 **Back at the battle:**

"Ash!" Ash's attention is brought to the girl that was staring across from him. "I did not expect to battle against you first of all people!" The girl had a purple attire and blonde hair, but most notably Ash noticed the keystone earring that Astrid had.

"Astrid, I have been looking forward to this rematch with you!" Ash exclaimed as he pumped his fist. "This time I won't lose!"

"Good, because I am looking for a challenge," Astrid exclaimed as she then smirked. "I am guessing you brought your Sceptile, I want to see how much he has grown since he was a Grovyle."

"Of course Astrid," Ash replied as he smirked and looked at the battlefield studying all of the tactics that he could use to win this battle. Ash then bobbed Sceptile's pokeball on his hand. "A certain someone has been waiting for a rematch this whole time."

"I am ready Ash," Astrid smiled as the referee out his hand out.

"This will be a 3 on 3 pokemon battle. Substitutions are allowed and the battle will be over as soon as all of the pokemon on either side are unable to continue." The referee then put his arm into the sky and exclaimed, "Choose your first pokemon!"

"Sceptile I choose you!" Ash shouts as he throws the pokeball into the air. The pokeball then opens and materialized a lot of energy into the green bipedal frog that appeared with a branch as a tooth pick.

"SCEPTILE!" Sceptile shouted as he looked at Astrid and smirked as knew he would finally get the rematch he had been waiting for since he last battled Astrid and her mega Absol.

" _And Ash leads with his powerful Sceptile! So the rumor was true!"_

The crowd roared at this and Ash smiled as he looked at Sceptile and said, "This is it Sceptile, our debut, let's make a memorable one!"

"Tile!" Sceptile exclaimed as he looked onward to the field.

"To get to Absol, you will need to battle against some of my other pokemon as well," Astrid exclaimed as she took out a pokeball and threw it. "Go Meowstic!"

"Meeeoooowww!" The feline pokemon exclaimed as she came out of her pokeball and stood in front of Sceptile.

" _So it is grass against psychic this will be interesting!"_

The ref then raised his hand and exclaimed, "Battle!..."

 **Ash POV:**

Let's do this!

"Begin!"

 **Battle music start! Ash (Sceptile) vs Astrid (Meowstic):**

"Start things off with thunder wave Meowstic!" I hear Astrid exclaim. I look over to her feline pokemon and I notice that I have to avoid getting hit with that move, it does not matter what happens.

"Sceptile, heads up, jump up into the sky!" I shout as I throw my fist out. I gaze at Sceptile as I see my bipedal grass type gain the advantage of the air and completely avoid the hoop like electric move that then dissipated before hitting me. "Now Sceptile use leaf Storm!"

"Thunderbolt!" I hear from Astrid and I knew that I had the edge since thunderbolt was a slightly weaker move than leaf Storm.

"Scep… TILE!" I hear Sceptile shout as he exposed his tree like back and began to launch a barrage of razor sharp leaves inside of a gust of tornadic wind. I see Meowstic get enveloped in electricity and then launch the attack Sceptile. I watch with a smirk as the two attacks collide and cause a dust cloud to pick up in the middle of the field.

" _What a strong collision of ranged attacks!"_

"Use frenzy plant and grab Meowstic" I shout as I pump my fists. Sceptile obeyed and puts his hands into the ground which caused Sceptile to spark out some plants out of the ground and go into the dust cloud. Because of the dust. I could be sure that the attack would not fail as Astrid would not see it coming. When the dust cleared I see how the green plants have taken Meowstic and have her stuck in the air. "Yes!" I exclaim as I see the effect of my strategy.

" _Wow! Meowstic is now in a tough situation!"_

Astrid though, I look across to her and noticed her smiling. I put a confused look until I heard her say: "Psychic, make those plants yours!" My eyes widened as I saw how Meowstic raised her ears and then made the plants have a light blue outline and push onwards to unravel the feline and then make the plants go in the direction of Sceptile menacing the tree frog.

I grit my teeth at this, but I decide to use the best tool I have for my advantage, "Leaf blade!"

"Scep… TILE!" Sceptile exclaimed as he made the lateral part of his limbs glow into a green blade and then I saw as Sceptile sliced through his own created plants. As Sceptile broke the plants apart, I noticed the blue glow vanish, so I knew that I was fine from being in trouble from that.

"Meowstic, use psychic on the rocks to make them hit Sceptile!" I hear. I look as Meowstic makes rocks glow blue and then begin to swarm around the cat pokemon. Sceptile broke through the last plant only to see that there are shards of rocks from the battlefield headed right for Sceptile. I grit my teeth as I see this. I need to find a way to be a able to counter the attack, but maybe even be able to inflict some damage… I can't dodge so what will be my way?

" _This looks like a tricky situation for Ash, what can he do to get out of it?"_

That's it!

I then abduct my arms and extend the palms of my hands in order to make it look like if I am showing off claws and exclaim a move that has everything to do with claws, "Use dragon claw on the rocks and break them apart while charging Meowstic!"

"Scep…"

"Tile!" Hits one of the rocks and breaks it as he runs.

"Meow!" Launched rock.

"Tile!" Breaks rock. "SCEP…. TILE!" I see as Sceptile slashes Meowstic to the ground in front of Astrid and I smirk as I command my last attack.

"Sceptile, finish this off with leaf Storm!"

"ScepTILE!" I hear as I see the razor leaves rushing the Meowstic in a swirl-like wind. I watch as the attack causes an small explosion that made dust rush out of the ground and around the Meowstic because of the collision.

When the dust clears, Meowstic is on the ground unable to battle. "Meowstic is unable to battle!" I hear as the referee puts his hand out to Sceptile. "Sceptile wins!"

" _What an amazing turn of events and a lead for the one and only Ash Ketchum!"_

The crowd inundates the stadium with cheers and I slightly blush at all of the praise, but I look at my tree frog in front of me and smile. He smiled back and hands me a thumbs up…

Sceptile is right:

If I work together with my pokemon I can win just about any battle. My smirk becomes bigger as I look at the scoreboard and notice that Meowstic was blackened out on Astrid's roster. At this point I look back at Astrid who had recalled her cat back to her pokeball. "What what is Sceptile's next test?" I ask.

"This pokemon!" Astrid retaliated as she pulled out a pokeball from her belt and threw it. "Go Pyroar!"

"PY ROOOOAAAARRRR!" The male lion pokemon exclaimed and landed in front of Astrid in a rock. It cried regally and showed off his mane with pride. I obviously knew this would be a challenge because of the fire typing, but I knew that if I worked well with Sceptile, I could do anything.

" _And Astrid decides to go with a Pyroar, she wants the type advantage!"_

I smirk as I look at Astrid and say, "Type advantages aren't everything that matters."

Astrid looks at me very amused, "We'll see about that!"

"Sceptile, are you ready to keep going?" I ask. Sceptile looks at me and raises his fist with a lot of excitement. I look at Pyroar and decide that it would be best to check out the moves that he could have… I suspect a flamethrower. "Alright, start this off with using leaf Storm!" Sceptile quickly made his attack launch towards Pyroar with intensity. I knew that if a threat were to show up, I would be making sure it was there.

"Flamethrower!" I hear this and I smirk…

Gotcha!

The two attacks closed their gap and I see as he middle of the field gets enveloped in a small explosion. I knew that flamethrower was a powerful super effective move, but I had the perfect counter for it with Sceptile. I also know that Pyroar being a normal type means that he is weak to fighting. I know Sceptile only really knows a dragon type move out of his grass type range, but I decide that I can try something else. "Close in on Pyroar, I want to try and have you at close proximity!" Sceptile nods at me and the the tree frog leaps into the air and lands in front of Pyroar with extreme agility.

" _So Ash's strategy to avoid the type disadvantage is to attack from close range! How interesting!"_

"No way! Fire fang!" I hear from Astrid who I see pumping her fist.

"ROAR!" Pyroar exclaimed as he made blazing mandibles appear in front of him and are about to smash down on Sceptile.

I grit my teeth at this, but I decide to be quick, "Sceptile use leaf blade!" Sceptile makes a blade with his arm and then thrusts it out. The leaf blade then gets bitten down on by the fire fang and I knew that I had to act quick. "Now kick Pyroar in the abdomen!"

"Tile!" I hear Sceptile exclaim as he used his leg to thrust it into Pyroar's belly. I then notice that the connection of fire fang and leaf blade was released so I went for the next move:

"Punch Pyroar back down towards the battlefield and then follow up with using dragon claw!" I exclaim as I put my fist out. Pyroar had been soaring because of the last kick, but then Sceptile in a blink of an eye made it to be eye level with the lion pokemon. Sceptile then pulled back his fist and punched Pyroar right on the figure back towards the rocky battlefield. I see as Pyroar falls with extreme power and then as Sceptile summons his green claws. I smirk as I see Sceptile then fall down towards the Pyroar that was struggling to get back up.

" _This does not look so good to Pyroar, will Sceptile finish this off?"_

"Fire fang straight up!" I hear from Astrid. I could hear how her voice was very desperate. She definitely had not been expecting this. Pyroar tried to make his fire mandibles, but it was too late and Sceptile came in and smashed his scaly claws into the lion pokemon. An explosion ricocheted throughout the stadium and Sceptile then appeared in front of me with a hand on his branch toothpick.

" _This truly is an intense battle!"_

 **At the stands:**

"What a Sceptile," Hau remarked as he looked at the bipedal grass type. "No doubt this trainer is definitely strong…" Hau then smirked, "But I know that if I believe in my pokemon, the 200k is as good as mine and I will be able to save Lillie!"

Serena was a couple rows back with Ash's friends and in her lap was the electric rodent, "Pikachu, what do you think about Sceptile's battling?" Serena asked.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu exclaimed in excitement as he looked back down at the field and gathered some electricity on his cheeks that made Serena smile.

Calem had his arms crossed, "No doubt that Ash is very powerful with Sceptile." Calem then turned to the others and said, "Sceptile is probably the one pokemon that I have seen Ash has found a secret ability too."

"Haha, I have seen everything Ash has been capable of," Serena smiled at the jet black haired trainer. Serena then looked back at Ash and said, "Ash has so much in store for his battles."

Shauna then turned to Serena and asked, "Wait, what is Ash capable of?"

"Special things, let's put it at that," Clemont replied as he leaned back on his chair. "Ash has the ability to be so close to his pokemon, that it makes it so that he can unlock their full potential. After all, Ash has been training hard for this, specially after it took him two tries to defeat Wulfric, it helped him master this."

"It took two tries for Ash to defeat Wulfric?" Calem asked with some shock.

Brock then spoke up, "Yea, his first battle proved that he wasn't trusting his pokemon and he got absolutely slaughtered." Brock then looked at Ash and said, "The moment Ash rematched Wulfric, he had become so mature and powerful, it was like if he could defeat anyone… and frankly, I can see it happening with Ash if he keeps this up."

"Go Ash! Go Sceptile!" Bonnie exclaimed with a smile as she stood up from her chair.

"Pikapi pika!" Pikachu exclaimed as the rodent began to cheer on Ash as well.

 **At the battle normal POV:**

"Pyroar keep this up, use flamethrower!" Astrid exclaimed with a strong voice.

Ash gritted his teeth as he saw this, "leaf blade let's go!" A slightly dazed Sceptile that just got hit with a fire fang to then get surprised with a wild charge stood up and made the lateral part of his limbs glow into green blades. Sceptile saw as the jet of fire got closer and with fast reflexes intercepted and caused the flamethrower to be sliced at the point in which Sceptile could easily retreat his blades and be unharmed from the fire type attack. "Now use frenzy plant and trap the Pyroar!"

"Scep… TILE!" Sceptile exclaimed as he put his arms into the ground for then some plants to shoot out of the ground with great intensity in the direction of Pyroar.

"Dodge it Pyroar!" Astrid exclaimed as she saw the incoming plants. Pyroar attempted to dodge, but the attacks from before have down their toll and Pyroar got consumed in the plants to then be crushed and thrown violently into the ground. "Pyroar no!" Astrid exclaimed with a lot of worry.

As the referee looked at the look on the ground, he noticed that Pyroar had lost consciousness. "Pyroar is unable to battle! Sceptile wins!" The crowd then erupted to cheers once more and Ash smiled at his tree frog. At the same time, Astrid recalled her Pyroar and the scoreboard updated:

 **Ash:** (pokeball) (pokeball) **Sceptile**

 **Astrid:** _Meowstic Pyroar_ **(pokeball)**

 **At the stands:**

Serena was at the edge of her seat, "Go Ash! Only one more pokemon!" Serena then grabbed her ribbon and smiled.

"I wouldn't be too sure about that," Clemont said with a serious tone. "I checked out some of Astrid's pokemon… and her partner is mega evolving Absol."

"Good luck Sceptile!" Bonnie shouted from her seat through the roaring crowd. It was obvious that Ash might not hear, but support definitely meant a lot to him.

"Mega evolving Absol? Oh dear," Shauna said with a serious face. "Ash may be in trouble for this one."

"Pika pika," Pikachu shouted with pumped fists at his trainer that was on the battlefield. "PIKACHU PIKAPI!"

"Pikachu is right…" Everyone turned from their seats to look at the honey blonde grabbing her ribbon with a smile. "Sceptile will get this sweep because he believes in Ash." Serena then clenched her fists, "Sceptile's will is what will _overgrow_ Absol's mega evolution. That is what drives Ash with Sceptile in this battle."

Everyone looked at the honey blonde with blue eyes with shocked expressions except the electric rodent in her lap. Pikachu smiled and gathered electricity in his cheeks to portray that he agreed with Serena. Serena smirked at this and stood up from her seat while shouting, "Go Ash! Go Sceptile!"

 **Back at the Battle:**

" _What will be Astrid's last pokemon?"_

Astrid looked at Ash and met his gaze with a smile, "I had a feeling it would get down to these two!" Astrid then reeled back her hand as she threw a pokeball, "Go Absol!" The pokeball was watched by thousands as it soared through the sky until it opened with a large flashing light that materialized into the sinister four legged pokemon with a horn on the side of his face. At the same time the scoreboard put Absol on Astrid's line up.

"SOL!" The pokemon cried as he looked down at Sceptile and narrowed his eyes. It was now the time for the main rematch and it was obvious that it would be intense. Astrid looked closer and saw the mega stone around Absol's neck. This was it.

" _There it is! Astrid's powerful Absol!"_

"So here comes our battle with Absol!" Ash smiled as he narrowed his eyes. "Sceptile let's give it everything we have!"

Sceptile gave a thumbs up to his trainer, "Tile!" Then Sceptile turned to Absol and narrowed his eyes with determination.

" _The tension between both pokemon is growing… Who will win?"_

The crowd roared at this. The entire stadium was pumped to see the outcome of the battle of this point because it was evident that there would be a strong collision of power.

"Absol, start this off with psycho cut!" Astrid exclaimed with determination as she put her arm out. Absol reeled his horn back and made it glow purple before he swung his head around and made a purple blade shoot right at Sceptile.

Ash narrowed his eyes as he looked at the attack coming. Suddenly, he raised his hand and commanded: "Jump up!" Sceptile responded with great speed as he crouched his legs and jumped into the air with a large amount of power. Ash noticed as the psycho cut went under Sceptile and exploded in the ground below him. Ash then extended his arm and shouted, "Use leaf blade!"

"Scep… TILE!" Sceptile exclaimed as he made his right hand glow a blade and then began to fall in the direction of Absol while aiming down the blade.

"Mega horn!" Astrid shouted as she put her fist out. Absol made his horn glow green and then he jumped up in the direction of Sceptile with great power. The two attacks collided and they stood at a stalemate with sparks coming out. Ash and Astrid gritted their teeth at this until a shockwave echoed through the stadium making Astrid's hair blow as Ash's scarf went wide behind him. Both pokemon retreated to be in front of their trainers until Astrid pumped her fist, "Use dark pulse!"

Ash went wide eyed at this and shouted, "Dragon claw!" Sceptile put his green claws out and then intercepted the dark pulse with them. Suddenly, an explosion caused Sceptile to recoil to be in front of his trainer. Sceptile smirked at this as Astrid grew confident.

" _Neither pokemon is backing down! I have never seen a battle like this one!"_

"We will be finishing this off here!" Astrid then touched her earring and made it glow white. "Absol!" Prongs flew out of the keystone and mega stone and then collided with each other this causing Absol to glow white. "MEGA EVOLVE!"

"AB…. SOL!" Absol shouted as he began to grow a pair of wings and a much larger horn. When the light died down, the DNA symbol appeared in front of Absol with great power.

" _Amazing! Third battle and we already have a mega evolution! This is going to be so exhilarating for a league!"_

"There it is…" Ash whispered to himself. "Now let's do this Sceptile!" Ash commanded as he looked at his bipedal tree frog.

"Tile!" Sceptile replied with a smile. "Scep…" Sceptile grunted as he looked over at the mega evolved Absol.

"Absol use Blizzard!" Astrid commanded as she put her arms out. Absol made himself glow a light blue, but then he made a large amount of snow appear and begin to head towards Sceptile.

"Tile!" Sceptile groaned as he got hit with the entire barrage of snow. Ash gritted his teeth at this. He did not expect such a super effective move to come from Absol and it could prove fatal. Sceptile fell in the ground in front of Ash on the ground in pain and hardly able to get back up.

" _What an attack! Is this it for Sceptile?"_

"Sceptile…" Ash said in a normal voice that then turned into a confident voice, "Get up… we are not finished here!"

"Scep…" Sceptile cried as he began to put his palms down on the rocky ground and push himself up to his knees. "SCEP TILEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Sceptile exclaimed as he made himself glow green and with green eyes. Sceptile stood in a broken pose, but he still harbored so much power that his ability was able to activate and give out the power it needed. At this, the ref flinched while the entire crowd cheered.

" _And with that, Absol's special ability triggers! Amazing!"_

"Yes!" Ash shouted as he smirked and pumped his fists. "Now we're even Astrid."

Astrid flinched at seeing Sceptile. It was one thing to see Sceptile use overgrow on tape, it was another to see it happen live in front of her in person. The crowd roared in approval at this and Ash knew he could finish this.

 **At the stands:**

"So that is what Ash was going for all along," Brock said with crossed arms and a smile. "But I am worried that Sceptile is running out of steam."

"Sceptile will win… I know so!" Serena interjected causing Brock to flinch and look at her with shock.

 **Back at the battle:**

"Sceptile use leaf blade!" Ash exclaimed with a confident tone. Sceptile made his blades glow to a size that no one had ever seen before.

"Quick use megahorn!"

Both pokemon closed the gap and then the greenhorn collided with the green blade.

Left

Right

Left

Right

Those were all of the sides through which Sceptile attacked, but Absol completely blocked them all. Ash gritted his teeth as he brought out his hand and exclaimed, "Use leaf Storm!"

"Blizzard!" Astrid commanded with a fist out.

Absol charged up a barrage of snow while Sceptile made a tornadic barrage of leafs. The attacks then closed the gap and then there was a large explosion that consumed the entire stadium. "Tile!" Sceptile grunted as he got pushed back by the explosion to be in front of his trainer.

" _What a collision of attacks! This surely is no ordinary match!"_

"SOL…" Absol grunted the same as he ended up like Sceptile.

"Mega horn!" Astrid exclaimed. Absol slowly got up and made his horn glow large and green.

Ash gritted his teeth as he put his arm out, "Grab it with dragon claw!"

"Scep… TILE!" Sceptile exclaimed as he made the green pairs of claws and clamped down on the green horn.

" _Uh oh, Absol is completely trapped!"_

"Absol get out of there!" Astrid exclaimed with worry. Absol tried to get out, but he could not get away from Sceptile's monstrous grip. Astrid then witnessed as Sceptile spun around and launched Absol into the air.

"Sceptile!" Ash exclaimed as he began to crouch down. Ash then formed two fists with his hands. "FRENZY!" Ash then slammed both fists into the ground. "PLANT!"

"Scep…. TILE!" Sceptile shouted as he fist bumped his fists and then punched the ground. The plant roared from the ground and headed to the mega evolved pokemon that was soaring helplessly. The plants then constricted themselves around Absol and slammed Absol into the rocky ground causing a large shockwave that caused Ash's scarf to quickly shake. Ash smirked at this knowing he probably just inflicted a lot of damage… Ash though, he underestimated his own power.

" _What a devastating frenzy plant! Is this it for Absol?"_

Sceptile then pumped his fist as he saw this and turned around to Ash while his green glow vanished. "Tile Sceptile!" Sceptile cheered and danced around to Ash's confusion.

"Huh?" Ash asked watching Sceptile dance around.

The plants and smoke then cleared and Ash saw that Absol was on the ground without his mega evolution. "Absol!" Astrid shouted seeing as Absol was fainted.

"Absol is unable to battle," the ref then raised his arm. "Sceptile is the winner! Which means the win goes to Ash from Lumiose City!" Ash stood a little dumbfounded until he heard the cheers from the stands and the scoreboard display his name as the winner. At this, Ash's face lit up.

" _Sceptile did it! He swept! No doubt this is going to be one of our favorites to go all the way!"_

"Yea!" Ash exclaimed as he jumped into the rocky field to embrace Sceptile. Sceptile saw this and spread his arms out and Ash was able to deliver a large hug to the tree frog.

 **At the stands:**

"YES Ash!" Serena shouted as she grabbed her ribbon and stood up from her seat. Calem and Shauna clapped as Clemont and Brock smiled to themselves.

"Ash you go boy!" Bonnie exclaimed as she high fived Serena. The two girls obviously had so much excitement from the battle.

Hunter looked at the battle and smiled as he felt one of the pokeballs on his belt, "A collision of leaf blade and blaze kick…" Hunter then smirked and looked down on the field.

Hau was amazed, "I can't believe it…" Hau then sighed, "Doesn't matter… I will get to the 200k if I play this right."

 **Back at the rocky arena:**

"Absol, you were great, take a good rest," Astrid said as she recalled Absol and then looked at Ash and Sceptile and smiled. Astrid then walked up to Ash and when the raven haired trainer noticed this he turned to the blonde and smiled. "Ash, I enjoyed that battle… Thank you."

Ash smiled as he and Sceptile exchanged a glance and then Ash turned to Astrid, "Thank you for this battle… It was one of the most exhilarating battles I had, just so you knew, I was actually on the edge of defeat the whole time."

"Huh?" Astrid went a little wide eyed at this and cocker her head. "What do you mean?"

Ash rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, "When I found out I was going to battle against you, I actually decided to only bring Sceptile and Noivern with me." Ash then smiled. "It was actually a two on three the whole time and Absol could have one hitted Noivern because of the four times weakness to ice."

"Whatever, great battle Ash," Astrid said as she shook Ash's hand.

As Ash shook Astrid's battle, he knew this was only the beginning. He would have to battle hard to reach the top… In the end, this would hopefully be the first of many exciting battles.

 **A/N: GG over 10k words. First time I reached this, but I am happy I did. Anyways I would like to thank you guys for reading and actually tell me what you think of the league format with the scoreboard and announcer.**

 **I think it is pretty neat ;)**

 **One more thing: Ash will be referenced to be from Lumiose City and not Pallet Town. This is in order to make it seem like Pallet Town is a part that Ash wants to move on from. Ash would prefer be known as the boy from Lumiose City, than the boy from Pallet Town that got betrayed.**

 **Anyways, Ash's next battle may include a pseudo legendary so be hyped up for that. Also, who knows who else will battle to amaze Ash.**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **ArmorshippingFan: Surprising huh? Well I hope you enjoyed the battles! Thanks for reviewing!**

 **Guest 1: Haha, IMPOSTER!**

 **Guest 2: I know right! I will keep it up alright!**

 **TrainerKSlord: Mega Charizard X is a dragon :3. Thanks for reviewing and enjoying bro, and yes, his team can be seen as OP XD!**


	32. Chapter 32

**With Hau:**

Hau was walking to one of the video phones at the Pokemon center. He had just given Incineroar's pokeball to Nurse Joy following a 3-0 sweep on his opponent. Hau remembered the battle clearly. The guy didn't even stand a chance to even scratch Incineroar. Just as he walked out of the battle though, he remembered seeing Ash look at him with interest from his seat in the stands. Hau was interested in Ash after all. Specially after seeing Sceptile sweep, he felt like returning the favor with Incineroar. Of course Hau succeeded. He would have not thought about it himself.

Hau sat down at one of the video phones to then dial a number… The same number he constantly dialed ever since the beginning of his journey in Kalos.

"Mallow!" Hau shouted as he saw the green haired girl appear in the screen.

"Hau…" Mallow whispered as she looked at Hau's eyes. "I watched your battle, we are all very proud of you." Mallow then blushed slightly after saying that to then turn to Hau and smile. "Kiawe was proud to see Incineroar do so well!"

Hau tried to force a smile, but he couldn't, he just turned to Mallow and said: "Thanks… I did not expect to do that well in the first match." Hau then turned to the green eyed girl and asked, "But how is Lillie?"

Mallow sighed at this and just replied, "Sorry, but no change in her condition… Since the last time you called nothing has changed, but she still needs the surgery."

Hau looked down and sighed, "Alright… Just gotta win then, that is it."

Mallow then looked at Hau as if understanding, but her face turned into a sad one, "Hau, I hate seeing you like this… give me a smile, please."

"Smile?" Hau asked.

"You used to all the time."

"I-I… until Lillie is not fine I won't smile," Hau said with clenched fists.

"Hau, where are you? Gosh dangit you are not the same person I met years ago!" Mallow snapped through the video phone at the verge of tears. "I know that you are not doing something selfish, but it is hurting you more than it helps…" Mallow then clenched her fists. "I can't even recognize you anymore!"

"Mallow, why do you always worry for me? It's Lillie we should worry about, not me!" Hau snapped back.

Hau saw how Mallow banged her fist on the video phone table with frustration, "I… I can't help but worry about you more because I…" Mallow then looked down and with a soft voice said, "I _fell_ for you…"

Hau went wide eyed as he looked at Mallow's lowered head, "W-wait… You actually…"

Mallow looked up with tears streaming down her cheeks and said, "Good luck Hau… I know you can win this for Lillie…" Hau then witnessed as the screen went completely blank because Mallow hung up. Hau was shaking of shock, he could not comprehend what Mallow had just told him.

"Hau! Incineroar is all healed up and ready for tomorrow," Hau turned to see Nurse Joy calling him over. Hau sighed and stood up from the video phone in obvious frustration. As he walkef up to Nurse Joy, his eyes beamed with strength and frustration.

As he walked with clenched fists, the scene flew into Hau's bright eye… It was filled with anger and frustration… It had the burden he carried.

 **A/N: Why yes, that last paragraph you ready should have been treated the same way that the anime treated Alain's face after Chespie fell asleep. I have to say, that it is a powerful moment, and since I wanted to use it… why not on someone that has a similar goal to Alain? Battle to reach a point in which he can save the ones he loves.**

 **Of course, it is a matter of time before he does or doesn't. Keep in mind that making characters suffer is something I like to do… and don't call me a bad guy, because I am just trying to add color to the story. I am not Adolf Hitler IRL lol! Anyways, understand that I just took a character that is usually very happy to be the most depressed thing in the world!**

 **Anyways, I really did plan to make some things happen this chapter, but I decided to add a little more as I hoped that adding some more context would be cool!**

 **Anyways! Let's continue with the story! If you didn't already know, Ash defeated Astrid last round with only Sceptile. Since the anime did it with Greninja, but I wanted to keep Ash-Greninja secret for now… I decided to do Sceptile instead! So, understand that things only get harder from here on out for Ash… and other notable participants will also be having a hard time with their battles, I know so.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 32- Lumiose Conference Must Sees! A moment to prep talk! Serena confesses she loves Ash!

 **With Ash at his room:**

Ash's room was rather packed that night, mostly because Ash invited everyone to have a gathering after the first round. Clemont and Trevor were walking while Brock and Tierno were also in conversation. Listening closer, Ash heard something about girls which didn't surprise him since both of them hit on everyone.

"PIKA?!"

"SCEPTILE?!"

Both pokemon screeched at the top of their lungs as Calem, Shauna, and Serena gave Ash an incredibly shocked face. Pikachu then fell face first to the ground and Sceptile face palmed. Ash decided to leave Sceptile out of his pokeball for the day to celebrate his huge victory.

"Y-You only had Sceptile with you during the battle?!" Calem asked as he nearly face palmed. "I know you are reckless, but you could have at least brought Pikachu with you."

"I brought Noivern too," Ash interjected. "I just wanted to challenge the ability of my team. After all, I won." Ash then turned to Sceptile and looked with a confused face, "Dude, you were there when I told Astrid, why are you so shocked?"

"Scep… sceptile…." Sceptile grunted as he fell flat on the ground. He just could not believe what his trainer did at that moment.

"Dang, talk about wanting to win the tournament and then intentionally bringing less than three pokemon to the plate…" Shauna remarked as Serena had an irritated look on her face.

"Next time…" Serena replied with a slightly agitated voice. "You are going to bring all of your pokemon with you to the trainer box."

"Alright alright," Ash sighed sheepishly as he then looked at Serena. "It's just that I wanted to let Sceptile here." Ash then put an arm around Sceptile and said, "Have a nice rematch that would be more than just a rematch after all."

Serena then looked at Ash and laughed to herself, "But how am I supposed to help you win when you make it harder for me?"

"Huh? Did you say something?" Ash asked.

"Huh? Oh…" Serena then had steam coming out of her head. "IT WAS NOTHING!"

"Uh, OK?" Ash asked slightly unconvinced.

Calem then turned to Ash and said, "Anyways, we all won today, why don't we get something to eat in order to celebrate?"

"No need to," Brock's voice resonated through the group that now got together. "Clemont and I prepared some food for everyone in order to celebrate!"

"Really?!" Ash exclaimed with happiness.

"Yes indeed," Clemont replied.

Bonnie looked slightly bored, so she went to Ash's bed and saw the television set across from the bed. "Might as well," Bonnie said to herself as she picked up the remote and turned on the television. The screen went static for a moment, but then turned to a talk show. Bonnie turned up the volume as her focus went into the television.

The room was two couches and a large screen in between. Sitting in one of the couches was none other than Malva of the elite four, and across from her was Diantha and Professor Sycamore. The first one to look at the camera was Malva, and she spoke up for the three that were gathered in the room.

"Hello there people of Kalos, this is Malva here with coverage from the Kalos League!" Malva then had another camera angle come to her and she turned to it as she said, "I am here joined by two of our most prestigious battlers and researchers here in Kalos… Professor Augustine Sycamore." Malva points to the professor who is leaning back on his seat.

"A pleasure to be here Malva," Professor Sycamore said as he bowed down at the camera.

"And champion Diantha," Malva finished.

"The pleasure is all mine," Diantha said tonte camera with a courtesy and then sat back down.

Malva then looked back at the professor and champion and said, "A lot has gone down today at the Kalos League right?"

Professor Sycamore smiled, "Indeed. I was was able to learn so much just by watching the trainers battle. I also learned that large amounts of power can be overwhelming as some of our participants got completely steamed over."

Diantha chuckled at this as she said, "I do agree that some of the participants were very powerful, one of the including Satoshi with his Aegislash, Ash's Sceptile, Hau's Incineroar, and even Hunter's Eevee." Diantha then smiled, "There are so many I did not mention such as Damian's Hydreigon and even Calem's powerful Talonflame."

Malva then stopped Diantha from talking to question her, "What did you think about the Aegislash that knew flamethrower and night slash? I think we also got to see a sludge bomb in there too." As Malva said this, highlights from Satoshi against Harvey appeared on screen between the reporters. It was the Aegislash that used flamethrower and then use night slash to finish off a Rhyperior.

Diantha sighed a little before saying it, "I don't think it has to do with cheating at all. I actually feel like there is a reason why that Aegislash was capable of those moves."

Professor Sycamore then interjected, "I do find the awkward as well, but I don't feel like it will be too much of a problem." Professor Sycamore then put his hand behind his back and said, "I liked the way Trevor's Charizard took down that Relicanth, and the way that Tierno swept a team of Eeveelutions was interesting. I really thought that Blastoise would have fallen to the Leafeon, but he managed to get through." At that time, those highlights through the screen.

"What did you think of Nero and his Braviary?" Malva asked Diantha.

Diantha smiled, "He looked ambitious, but I think something may happen to where he will cause an upset. Anyways, the match randomizer will make it so that we know who goes against who."

Malva then turned to the screen and said, "Now to give us some match ups for tomorrow is Valerie, the Laverre City gym leader!" At that moment the screen lit up and the fairy type trainer was portrayed through the screen. Malva, Professor Sycamore and Diantha turned to see the female with long sleeves to then smile. Malva then spoke up, "Welcome Valerie, to the first segment of the Lumiose Conference coverage. I suppose you have the matchups for tomorrow."

"Thanks for letting me be on the show today, and yes in fact I do have the matchups for tomorrow," Valerie said with a snicker. "Tomorrow we will have an interesting battle to start things off between Ash and Remo."

"Ash and Remo," Professor Sycamore said with excitement. "That does look like an amazing matchup we can start our predictions with."

"I agree," This time it was Diantha that spoke. "Ash and Remo are both capable battlers, Remo also passed the first round with a mega Garchomp." At that time the camera changed to portray Garchomp using dragon rush to knock out a Breloom. "It is capable of mega evolving that does mean that there will be a strong matchup."

"Not only that," Professor Sycamore replied. "Both trainers swept their battles in the first round which makes this a hard prediction." Sycamore then sighed, "Because I believe Ash lacks a mega evolution and because Remo has that powerful of a pokemon, I am going to go with Remo." The others stared at Professor Sycamore as in surprised by the answer, but the Sycamore kept going, "Yes, Diantha, I am aware of Ash's key stone on his glove, but he had it there since the beginning of the journey,but last time I checked, Charmeleon has not evolved meaning that Ash still has no way to mega evolve."

Diantha then smirked, "I believe the opposite, I am going for Ash because I know that he is capable of taking down any form of mega evolution like he did today. Also, I have taken a glimpse at Ash's party, so I would rephrase that last part." Diantha ended this with a wink and Professor Sycamore looked at Diantha in confusion. Diantha then shook her head and smiled.

"I am actually going to go for Remo," Malva stated calmly. "The participant really has some strong spirit to battle with just a mega evolved pokemon like that."

"Well," Valerie replied with a laugh. "I want to see Noivern again, he took down my pokemon once, and I want to see him perform well again." Valerie then paused. "I put my faith in Ash with this battle." After Valerie made her prediction, she smiled at the camera again, "Now, the second battle includes the first challenger of the entire league, this is being Hunter who will be going up against Nero."

"Nero will win this hands down," Diantha said first with a smirk. "He has proven himself to be able to sweep with just a Braviary while Hunter had to switch out his Eevee into Electivire."

"Really?" Malva said with a smirk as she knew something others didn't, "If Hunter uses the pokemon I think he will use, then he will win."

"What pokemon could possibly be that powerful?" Professor Sycamore asked with a shrug of his shoulders. "I think Nero will also win."

"After all," Valerie started. "When I battled Hunter I did not get as badly beaten as when I battled Nero. That is why Nero will probably win this one." Valerie then went out to read the third matchup. "Lenny against Herbert is the third battle, what do you guys think about Lenny's Barbaracle and Herbert's Venusaur? A possible mega evolution match by Venusaur?"

"Very possible, but I have to go with Herbert to win," Diantha said. "Being four times weak to grass will be fatal."

"I believe the same thing," Malva stated with a straight face.

"So, do we all agree that Herbert will likely win?" Professor Sycamore asked while the other three females nodded. "Alright, I think it is time for the break Malva."

Malva looked at the camera and smiled, "We will be right back after our short commercial break to discuss further matchups, there are 64 matches in the second round so they shouldn't take as long as today to get through them."

With that, the scene zoomed out of the room as music played in the background. Then a commercial for pokemon food came up.

"Well would you look at that," Bonnie sighed as she said the next part to herself, "Apparently Ash's Charizard does not exist to Professor Sycamore."

"Bonnie, aren't you going to eat?" Serena asked as she sat down next to Bonnie.

"Huh?" Bonnie said a little startled. "Oh, yea, I am just going to go on and grab something to eat from Clemont then." With that, Bonnie got up from the bed and went to the scientist as Ash took her place next to Serena.

"So Ash, did you pay attention to who you are going up against tomorrow?" The honey blonde as he raven haired.

"Huh?" Ash looked at the television set to see his face next to Remo. "Looks like it will be a rematch. I already know who I am using."

"Really?" Serena asked Ash as the latter stood up from the bed.

"Yea," As replied as he walked past Clemont and Calem. "I am going to go talk to the pokemon I will most likely use tomorrow… Pikachu, you coming?"

"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed as he jumped on his trainer's shoulders.

"Alright bud," Ash said as he petted Pikachu's fur. "Sceptile, want to come as well?"

"Tile!" The bipedal grass type nodded as he followed Ash to the door. The raven haired trainer then closed the door and stepped into the elevator.

Serena looked at the television once more and grabbed the remote, she then pressed the "rewind" button to see what was predicted about the Ash vs Remo battle. As she heard the predictions she smirked:

"If you said Ash won't win, you are completely wrong," Ash smirked. "Ash is stronger than anything you have seen."

 **With Ash outside the hotel:**

Ash had just come out of the elevator and he walked with his two pokemon out to the walkway of the trainer's village. Ash then walked a little before noticing a small staircase that was beside the walkway near the hotel. Ash cocked his head as he went up the small staircase to be met face first with a practice battlefield. On the battlefield was the cloaked man. He was not alone though, next to him was a Zoroark.

"So… it was a Zoroark," Ash said as he neared the man.

"Pika?" Pikachu asked slightly confused.

"Sceptile?" Sceptile asked as he neared his trainer. Sceptile found something about this man very familiar. Something radiated from him.

"Zora," Zoroark said as he looked at Ash and smirked a little under his snout.

The cloaked man smirked as he turned around, "I am impressed you can use a Pokedex." He then turned his back to Ash and replied, "You don't know what I am capable of…"

"What?" Ash asked in confusion as he stepped closer. "Wait, who are y-..." Ash was surprised as he was about to touch the man from behind to pull his cloak away only for his hand to grab air. Just like that, Zoroark and the cloaked man were gone.

"You will only find out who I am… When the time comes."

Ash gasped as he sighed and looked at his two pokemon. They had worried looks on their faces, but Ash just put on a smile, "Don't worry about it, I just have to talk to my pokemon." Ash then grabbed the other four pokeballs on his belt and threw them into the air. With that, flashing lights went into the sky and then fell in front of Ash making the shape of pokemon.

"Alright guys," Ash said as he stared at each one of his team mates. "We made it past the first round and now we have a surprise match against Remo tomorrow." Ash's pokemon all nodded in understanding. "In case I need to use all of you guys, be prepared, but Noivern, Charizard." Ash said as he looked at the two dragons in front of him. "I am going to be using you two for most of the battle, so stay prepared."

"Gruaw!"

"Noivern!"

"Alright," Ash said as he petted both dragons before turning to his frogs. "Sceptile, Greninja, despite the fact I will be using the flying types more, you guys stay sharp, because I may use you soon."

"Tile!"

"Ninja!"

Both frogs crossed their arms and leaned on each other back to back. This made Ash snicker a little, but Ash decided to talk to his other pokemon instead of full out laughing.

"Pikachu, Goodra," Ash said as he turned to the smallest and largest member of his group. "You guys will be used against pokemon that match your stature. So Goodra keep in mind that I am preferring you stay sharp for slow opponents, but keep up your aim in case anything surprises us."

"Dra!"

"Pikachu, I will use you when I am in the need for a fast and small pokemon, so stay flexible and fast," Ash told his electric rodent.

"Pika!" Pikachu pumped his fist at his trainer with excitement. Ash knew the debut of his pokemon was important not to mess up. If they came out showing off their strengths then it would be harder for their weaknesses to be found.

Ash smiled down at his team and put his hand out while his pokemon crowded around him. Ash signaled for them to join in. First, Pikachu jumped on Ash's shoulder and went to his hand and put his paw. Charizard then put his claws as Noivern put in his wings. Goodra then slimed up the encounter with his slimy hand, but that didn't matter as Sceptile put in his green limb and Greninja put in his webbed hand.

"Let's take on the Kalos League… TOGETHER!" Ash exclaimed as everyone raised their hands with a battle cry.

 **Back at the Hotel:**

"Bye guys!" Serena and Bonnie waved as they saw the elevator close. Clemont and Brock had already said goodbye to the others and they went ahead and went to their flood which is three above where the gang is right now. Clemont and Brock were already in their room and Ash had not come back yet, so Serena and Bonnie went into their room.

As the honey blonde entered, she lied down on one of the beds and sighed, "I am so tired! All that battling really took a toll on me!"

Bonnie went into the room and sighed, "Yea, because you always are the loudest and most confident in cheering on Ash." Serena tensed up at this and blushed furiously, which Bonnie noticed, "What? I am serious, I have never seen anyone support him that much before."

"Well…" Serena said with a small smile and blush. "I always believe in him when times are tough because I know he can get through those things."

Bonnie then smirked and decided to dig a little deeper as she sat down in the bed across from him, "So…" Bonnie started. "For how long have you had this crush on Ash?"

Serena was a little hesitant at first, but then sat up because she knew she could trust Bonnie to keep a secret, "Well, you see… I have had a crush on him ever since we first met. That was quite some time ago… Like eight years ago."

Bonnie gasped, "Eight years?" Serena nodded at this. "But… How were you not able to move on from your crush?"

Serena sighed as this was probably going to come out very intensely for the young lemon blonde, "You see… When I met Ash, he told me to 'never give up until the end'... That is what helped me through the hard relationship my family had. Before I met Ash, my father left my mother and me and I was devastated. Ash's guidance got me through that and I feel like I owe my life to him…" Serena trailed off as the small girl listened intently. "It's not a crush I have for Ash anymore… It's more than that…" Serena then took a deep breath. "I know I am only sixteen, but I don't know how long I will have to live this way until I finally break it to him…"

Bonnie's mouth was agape at this point. "Break what to him?" Bonnie asked shyly.

" _That I love him_ …" Serena said with a blush as she grabbed her ribbon. She felt good to finally get it all out of her chest, but it worried her that Bonnie listened to it all.

Serena expected a smirk from the little girl, but she was surprised to not see a sinister look, but a genuine smile in her face. Bonnie then spoke up in a soft and kind voice, "I understand how much Ash means to you… and for the sake of it, I won't tell him." Bonnie then gave a toothy grin and said, "You are the one that will tell him…" Bonnie then smiled, "And hey, who knows, maybe he does find someone as beautiful as you really attractive, but he does not know it."

Serena looked at Bonnie in awe. She did not expect such a genuine smile from Bonnie, but she gave Bonnie a warm smile before saying, "Thanks Bonnie, it means a lot to be able to get this off my chest."

Bonnie then gave a small laugh, "Yea, get the feelings out of your chest, but I would keep that ribbon." Bonnie then smirked, "Look, I might not tell him that you feel this way for him, but I may occasionally push you guys together."

Serena blushed at this, but also smiled as it might actually work after all, "Alright then Bonnie." Serena then lied down on her bed and said, "I am going to go to sleep. I can't wait to see the Ash against Remo rematch tomorrow."

"There we go again," Bonnie whispered to herself with an eye roll as she grabbed her bag and snuggled with Dedenne and Squishy. "Good night Serena!"

"Good night Bonnie," Serena replied back.

 **Ash's Room:**

Ash walked back onto his room to find it cleaned up. "Thanks guys for cleaning up after yourselves," Ash joked as he proceeded to lie down on his bed to then notice Serena's handkerchief on the bed. "Wow, she must have dropped it."

"Pikapi?" Pikachu asked.

"Be right back," Ash said as he left the room and noticed that Serena and Bonnie left their door unlocked. Ash quietly walked into the room and noticed the two girls sleeping, so she went up to Serena's bed and kneeled down in front of Serena. The honey blonde was sleeping in a position that had her hands in front of her face.

As Ash kneeled down he looked at Serena's peaceful face and felt warm. He liked the way it made him feel when Serena was close to him. He didn't know why.

Ash then grabbed the handkerchief and slipped it into Serena's open hand. As he put the handkerchief down though, Serena subconsciously closed her hand and grabbed Ash's hand. Ash panicked a little, but then relaxed. Serena's hand actually felt nice.

Ash sighed as he knelt down and gently used his other free hand to gently pry open the hands and then release his hand from her grasp. He felt bad as he actually enjoyed her hand, but he knew he needed to sleep, so he closed the door and went back into his room.

"Pikapi?" Pikachu asked as he was on his own bed.

Ash closed the door behind him and turned off the light as he hopped on his own bed, "Yea, we have a strong battle tomorrow. I am so excited…

Good night Pikachu."

From there on out, the night was silent.

 **A/N: Way to repeat the last line from Ch20… Anyways, now we know a little more about Serena and what she is going through as well as her reasons for loving Ash. This will play a role later on in the story.**

 **I also included the fact that the talk show makes analysis of the upcoming matches… Ash vs Remo next time… And we also have Hunter vs Nero. Be hyped for those two matches as they will be awesome!**

 **I know this was a short chapter, I think I am going to update chapter 33 on Saturday so look out for that, I don't want to keep you eager minds waiting too much!**

 **Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **ArmorshippingFan: Haha, maybe some of the answers you had were answered about Satoshi, anyways I wanted to give Sceptile that win so I am glad you liked it!**

 **TrainerKSlord: I am glad you enjoyed it! Next chapter will hopefully be out sooner, see ya there!**

 **Guest 1: Mhm, things are getting more interesting with the battles and I would be expecting so much more! Glad you enjoyed bro!**

 **RedAce16: Thanks! I worked very hard on these chapters, so yes the battles are very interesting. As for your question, I don't want to spoil too much: Remember that Ash is a combination of Ash and Alain, so expect to see both of their battlestyles when Ash battles. Another thing, I want to clarify is that as the league progresses, Ash will be more unpredictable than ever! So don't worry, things will get more intense! See ya next chapter and thanks again!**

 **Also, I want to say thank you guys for over 140 reviews, 110 favorites, and 113 follows! I never would have thought I would get there! Also, 33k+ views is awesome!**

 **Thanks so much!**


	33. Chapter 33

**Behind the hexagonal stadium:**

Hidden in the same alley way as before, Nero was waiting on his own for someone, "Rob come on…" Nero whispered to himself until he saw the familiar face come near him.

"Nero, what's up?" Rob asked as he gave Nero a friendly handshake.

Nero smirked and Rob and said, "You know that I am going up against a strong opponent today, right?" Rob nodded at this as Nero reached into his belt and began to bob a pokeball in his hand. "You are the referee for that battle right?"

"Yea, I told the administration I would be taking over as the role of refereeing the match," Rob responded with a sinister smile. "I was wondering what your plan was."

"Simple," Nero said quietly as he turned his attention to his surroundings making sure that no one was around. "I want to crush the Eevee of that guy. Whatever happens, don't disqualify me."

Rob smirked, "Kick that Eevee's a$$ so that no one has to worry about him throughout the tournament." Rob then turned around before walking away, "And Damian would be thrilled that we made it this far."

Nero nodded as he watched Rob disappear back into the walkway that lead into the stadium. Nero looked down at his pokeball and smirked. He was going to crush Hunter whether Hunter wanted to or not.

Meanwhile with Rob, he turned out of the corner to be met by Damian. Damian smirked and gave Rob a nod as he walked towards the stadium and blended in with the people walking around it.

The plan was going to begin… And it would not be pretty.

 **A/N: So this little conspiracy thing is going to begin soon enough and I am thrilled to see how it plays out.**

 **Anyways, today we have Ash against Remo. Last time the two battled, Ash really gave a large butt whooping to Remo, but will things end differently this time?**

 **We also have Hunter against Nero. This is going to be interesting as well.**

 **Let's also keep in mind that this round will be a surprise format which means that Ash has to adapt to the battle as it goes down.**

 **Anyways, this may be a little bit of a shorter battling chapter, but I promise you that when we begin to focus on Ash's battles more, there will be so much detail to be displayed that will make the battles interesting.**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Let's get right into the story then!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 33- A clash of dragons! An electrifying surprise!

 **At the trainer's lounge:**

Ash was sitting there patiently as he looked at the monitor. He noticed that the large stadium was very packed at this point. Next to it was Malva commentating over the matchups going on. Ash already knew that Remo would be tough, but he knew he could adapt to any strategy with a quick look at whatever they put in front of him. Air battle, he was ready, speed battle, also ready. Ash knew he could get this all done with the power that his pokemon worked together with.

Ash then noticed that the announcer began to announce the beginning of the battle, so he walked out of the lounge and began to make his way down the hexagonal tunnel that lead to the arena with Pikachu on his shoulder. He had to admit that Pikachu being with him was a very pleasant feeling other than the stressed out one that was given to him last time with only bringing two pokemon up to the plate for the sake of living at the edge of defeat.

" _Ash!"_

Ash stepped into the light to be lead to a step that was his trainer platform. Ash and Pikachu stepped up to the plate and Pikachu jumped out of Ash's shoulder to be on the ground as the crowd cheered Ash's name. Ash then remembered how everyone wished him luck before the match. Serena specifically had a large smile on her face, but she also checked Ash's belt to make sure all six pokeballs were there and when Ash was about to leave, Serena made sure that Pikachu would follow Ash no matter where the latter went. The raven haired trainer snickered a little at this as he stared at the figure that was coming up past the large gap to the opposite trainer platform.

" _Remo!"_

The crowd also cheered at Remo's name as Ash noticed the teenager with the umbrella appear in front of him as well. Ash smirked as he saw the guy and pumped his fist, "So we meet again."

Remo smirked, "I guess so Ash. Garchoo and I have been awaiting this rematch."

"Pika pika…" Pikachu said from Ash's side while gathering electricity.

Ash looked down at his rodent and petted his head, "I don't think I will use you, I am saving you for the next round." Pikachu sighed a little disappointed, but accepted his trainer's decision. "I promised two of my pokemon this battle, and they will get it."

"I am hyped up Ash, I can't wait," Remo replied as the crowd roared in approval.

" _And there we have it, a friendly rivalry between two trainers! Now let's look at the screen to see what our format is!"_

Ash and Pikachu along with the thousands of people in the stadium looked at the scoreboard that originally had Ash and Remo's face on it. Only to be replaced by two large pokeballs next to the trainer's face.

" _And it will be a double battle!"_

"A fast double battle huh?" Ash said as he started down at Remo. "Perfect."

 **At the stands:**

"A double battle?" Tierno asked as he sat next to Trevor. "That seems like an interesting way to change up the strategy of both trainers."

"I agree," Clemont replied from behind. "The different battle format really changes things up, I wonder who Ash will use."

"Go Ash!" Bonnie shouted as she got out from we seat.

"Do you see the way that Ash looks confident?" Serena pointed out. She was sitting next to Shauna and Brock. "I think Ash already has a plan."

"Of course he does," Brock smiled. "It's Ash."

"I did see Remo's team and it had a Garchomp," Calem said while crossing his arms. "And we know that Garchomp is a strong pokemon from when we first encountered one on the first day of our journey." At this Shauna nodded as she was one of the few that went after Garchomp at first.

Hau was at the other end of the stadium. He was taking notes about the battles so that he could understand his opponents better. One of them being Ash, who was able to take on a mega evolution after defeating two pokemon and not even mega evolving his pokemon. Hau sighed as he still felt the weight of his shoulders from the night before. It was really hard for him to see Mallow like that, but even worse was the way that Mallow said something that left him hanging by a thread. Hau started to scribble down more notes as he saw a grassy battlefield come up between the trainers he was watching.

 **At the Battle:**

" _And we will be battling in a grass battlefield!"_

Ash heard this as the gap between him and Remo was closed by a large grassy terrain. Ash smirked at this as he unclipped two pokeballs from his belt and held one on each hand.

The referee then stepped up and said, "This will be a double battle without substitutions. Once both pokemon on either side is unable to continue, the match is over." The ref then looked at the trainers and raised his hand, "Choose your pokemon!"

"Archeops! Garchoo! Let's go!" Remo exclaimed as he swung his body around and threw two pokeballs into the air. Ash saw how one of the pokemon was a colorful dinosaur like pokemon with wings that was flying. Garchoo appeared with his mega stone shining in the light right beside the Archeops. Unlike Archeops, Garchoo landed on the grass and tensed up his posture.

" _So we have an Archeops and a Garchomp, the same one that swept yesterday! Will Ash go with Sceptile?"_

Ash narrowed his eyes as he saw this, but he was confident in his chosen pokemon. He based these two as promise, not strategy, and despite the risk, he would not break a promise.

"Noivern! Charizard! I choose you!" Ash shouted as he threw the pokeballs into the air. They both opened and materialized into dragon shaped pokemon. One being an orange flying type with a blue stone in the harness and the other being a black bat pokemon with large ears. Both landed on the grass and made a battle cry that shook the stadium.

" _And Ash decides to switch things up with a Charizard and a Noivern! This will be a good battle folks!"_

The crowd roared as the scoreboard updated to show the pokemon that would participate:

 **Remo: Garchomp Archeops**

 **Ash: Noivern Charizard**

 **In the stands:**

"Ash's Charmeleon evolved?!" Trevor exclaimed with excitement as he saw the fire and flying type appear in the floor in front of him. "No way!"

"It is one of Ash's strongest too," Serena said with a smile while holding her ribbon. "Ash and Charizard trust each other very much to be able to battle with great strength alongside each other."

 **At the Battle:**

The referee then raised his hand, "Let the battle….

BEGIN!"

 **Battle music begin! Ash (Noivern and Charizard) vs Remo (Archeops and Garchoo):**

"Archeops use ancient power!" Remo announced with great confidence as the battle started. "Garchoo, stone edge on Charizard!" Archeops made seven rocks circle around him as he chucked them at the pair of flying types. Garchoo stomped on the ground and with that blue stones shot out of the ground in the direction of Charizard. The fire type narrowed his eyes as he saw this and waited for Ash's command.

Ash gasped as he saw that, it would be a four times effective hit. "Dodge it you two, fly into the air!" Noivern and Charizard both spread their wings and jumped into the sky around the hexagonal stadium and both attacks landed on the grass in front of Ash. Ash then sighed in relief seeing the danger over, but he knew he had to go on the offensive, "Charizard use thunder punch on Archeops! Noivern attack the Garchomp with a sky attack!"

"Noivern!"

"Gruaw!"

Both dragons roared as the began to dive in unison. Noivern began to glow gold as Charizard made fists both crackle with high voltage. The dragons dived and circled each other until they pulled up at the last second and Noivern flew to the left over Charizard and Charizard zoomed under and pulled back his fist.

"Both of you use dragon claw!" Remo ordered while pumping his fist. Garchoo and Archeops both made their claws glow green as they waited patiently for the attacks to come. Noivern dived down and collided head on with the two claws as Charizard flew up and met Archeops' green claws with crackling punches. The four pokemon struggled a little with a shockwave sending a strong wind through the stadium, but eventually the pokemon all fell back in front of their trainers.

" _Both these trainers are at a stalemate right now! How will this tie break?"_

"They are both well trained," Ash remarked as he scratched the side of his face and turning back to the battle. Ash then wondered and whispered to himself, "How will I win this battle?"

"I did not expect your Noivern to be just as powerful as your Charizard," Remo remarked while spinning his umbrella around. "But I am not finished, Archeops use steel wing! Garchoo use dragon rush!"

"Rawr!" Garchoo shouted as he began to glow a green glow around him that radiated a lot of light and then began to charge the two pokemon flying near Ash.

"Chee… OPS!" Archeops cried as he made his wings extend and glow white while charging next to Garchoo.

Ash did not expect Garchoo to be able to stay out of the ground like that, but he knew there was no other way to get out of the situation, "Fly up into the air and avoid them!" Charizard and Noivern flapped their wings as they went into the air. Noivern then split to the left and Charizard split to the right of the stadium both flying over the stands with great power and into a height at which one could see all of the stands with people. The silver blur split off behind Noivern while the blue one split after Charizard. The crowd roared as they witnessed this, the battlefield was the sky and they were so close to it.

" _What a show for everyone, I am at the edge of my seat right now and everyone should be too!"_

 **At the stands:**

" **Swoosh!"** Serena and the others covered their faces as Noivern passed right above them. Serena turned around on instinct to see Noivern curve up and fly higher into the sunny sky.

"Amazing…" Serena said in awe as she watched the soundwave dragon fly higher to blend in with the sun.

" **Swoosh!"** Another pokemon zoomed by behind Noivern. Serena looked up to see it being the Archeops with silver glowing wings. The crowd roared at this, but then Serena looked on ahead to see Charizard being chased by a light blue blur in the distance.

" **Boom!"** Serena heard two separate explosions. One from above her and one from the distance. She then saw Charizard and Noivern falling. She gasped as she gripped her ribbon with intensity to then notice that Charizard straightened himself out and diverged to be flying around the stands, but her worry was on Noivern who kept falling.

"This doesn't look good," Serena heard Brock say.

"If they take too much damage like this…" Clemont said obviously not wanting to finish what he was saying. Serena did not care though, she kept looking on ahead at the battle with faith in Ash.

'Ash you better win this battle' Calem thought. 'We have a promised battle and I am getting one from you…'

 **At the Battle:**

"Pikapi!"

Ash gritted his teeth as he witnessed his dragons get hit in mid air and begin to fall to the ground. "Ancient power!" Ash heard from ahead of him to then look up and see Noivern, who had just been hit with steel wing, about to be hit by some rocks flying around Archeops who then launched them at the black flying type. Charizard and Garchoo though, they split up as Charizard stayed flying near the stands and Garchoo landed in front of Remo with a smirk.

" _Uh oh, this looks like trouble for Ash as the rocks are approaching Noivern with large speed and intensity as they fall!"_

"Use supersonic to break the rocks!" Ash exclaimed while putting his hands out.

"Noi… VERNNNNN!" Noivern cried intensely as he turned on his back and extended his wings to slow down his descent. Then, Noivern made sound waves come out of his ears with amazing intensity and that caused the rocks to break apart in mid air with explosions that Archeops went through. Seeing this, Remo gritted his teeth as Archeops lost control of his wings and began to fall.

"Straighten yourself Archeops!" Remo exclaimed. Archeops opened his eyes and straightened out his wings extremely fast for the ancient pokemon to get a grip on the air again and continue flying. "Now Garchoo use dragon claw! You too Archeops!"

Ash recoiled at this since Noivern was by himself. He noticed that Charizard was behind the opponents meaning that he would not be able to make it in time, so Ash decided to rely completely on Noivern, "Noivern trust me on this one, we have to work together!".

"Vern!" The sound wave dragon replied as he watched the two pokemon from the opposing side begin to charge with green claws.

"Use Boomburst on the ground!" Ash shouted while punching the ground. Noivern made his ears glow white and aim at the ground. The soundwaves expelled caused a large dust cloud to appear on the grass and in front of the opposing pokemon thus making Ash smile when he saw Noivern flying harmlessly out of the dust cloud leaving the two others with great confusion. At this time, Ash noticed Charizard creeping up between the two pokemon and Ash put his hand in the air, "Use sky attack and flare blitz!"

Remo stood there agape as he witnessed his pokemon get squashed between a blue fiery aura and gold aura. Everyone witnessed how the two flying types charged the other pokemon and caused an explosion in the middle of the field.

" _Amazing team work by Noivern and Charizard! They both showed how to get back at their opponents after they got hit with strong attacks!"_

Archeops and Garchoo slowly got up though, and Remo was shocked to see the amount of damage they had taken, "Garchoo, Archeops, are you two alright?"

"Rawr!"

"Arch!"

"Good then," Remo grunted as he clenched his fists.

Ash did the same knowing that his pokemon had taken a decent amount of damage before, and a look at Charizard who had some red electric marks surrounding him indicated that Charizard was taking recoil damage from flare blitz.

 **At the stands:**

"So Noivern can use sky attack while Charizard can use flare blitz," Hau whispered to himself as he looked at the battle. He had to admit he did not expect this much of a combination of power, but the fact was that it was extremely unpredictable. Hau just closed his eyes and took a deep breath, "It doesn't matter if I lose, I just have to reach the 200k before I do." Hau noticed that everyone around him was extremely excited for the battle. In fact, despite his seating towards the back and barely having a view of the stadium. Hau was at the edge of his seat for this battle.

Night was at the other side of the stadium looking at the battle with Leaf. He was surprised to see the amount of power shown by Ash and Remo. "Well, too bad Hunter has the next match, he is missing out."

"Yea," Leaf replied as she looked at the grassy arena under her. "I have never seen a battle where the entire stadium was involved like this."

Serena was out of her seat seeing the collision between sky attack and flare blitz on Remo's pokemon, "Yes!" She cheered with confidence and a pumped fist.

"I wouldn't be too excited just yet…" Tierno said.

Everyone looked at Tierno in confusion before Trevor spoke up, "Look at Garchomp… That's a mega stone."

Serena just face palmed at this, "You remember the last battle Ash battled in?" Trevor shook his head and so did Tierno, they had matches at later times so they missed the first battle that Ash participated in. Serena then smirked, "Ash took down a mega Absol without even mega evolving Sceptile."

"Wow really?" Tierno asked in awe.

"It was amazing, you totally missed it," Calem replied with a smile. Calem then put his hand on his chin and looked at Ash's Charizard a little closer before closing his eyes and smiling, "Besides, Ash _can_ use mega evolution."

"Seriously?" Trevor asked as he looked at Ash's glove in the distance. Trevor noticed the shining glove, but by looking at Charizard, he did not see any form of mega stone. "Where is the mega stone though."

"Looks like someone needs an eye check," Shauna taunted Trevor. "You'll see."

 **At the Battle:**

" **Lizardon, doragon croaw! Onvern, back ompa!"** Ash commanded as he closed his open hand in front of him into a closed fist that had an amazing amount of power.

"GRUAW!"

"VERN!"

Both pokemon began to fly towards their opponents and Charizard charged up his green claws as Noivern then curved up and stared down the grounded opponents and making his tornadic sounwave move expel from his ears with great power.

Remo saw this and exclaimed, "Garchoo use dragon claw and intercept Charizard!" Then Remo put down his arm and ordered, "take flight and counter Boomburst with hyper beam!" Garchoo sprung into action and charged up his green claws which ended up colliding with Charizard in a stalemate that sent sparks going all over the collision while Archeops took flight and charged up the dark and draconic beam. As the sound wave attack came, the hyper beam fired and there was a huge stalemate of power before suddenly there was a large explosion in the middle of the arena.

All four pokemon fell back in front of their trainers in pain and with damage marks all over them, it definitely was unexpected that the explosion would have been that big. But no one was backing down.

"Charizard! Noivern!"

"Garchoo! Archeops!"

" _What an exchange of fierce blows! This is just as much an aerial battle of strength!"_

The four pokemon got up, but barely as they struggled to move. Ash and Remo both gritted their teeth. This was extremely intense. Remo though, he decided to finally unleash his ace as he waved his umbrella around, "Garchoo!" Remo then touched the key stone on the umbrella to then make the prongs unleash and collide together while making Garchoo glow white. "MEGA EVOLVE!" Garchoo made a ear bleeding battle cry as he began to grow spikes and scythe shaped arms. Garchoo then lost coloration and looked at Charizard with amusement and power while narrowing his eyes in determination.

" _And Remo mega evolved his Garchomp! Amazing!"_

Ash heard the cheers of amusement from the crowd and he narrowed his eyes. There it was, mega Garchomp.

"Garchoo, Draco meteor!" Ash heard Remo command with excitement.

"RAWR!" Garchomp shouted with power when a orange orb charged up in front of his mouth and then the land shark pokemon launched it into the air with great power. The orb then split into many falling meteors and Ash knew he had to do something as he slightly recoiled.

"Charizard, Noivern, fly up and dodge it!" Ash shouted with panic. The two dragons looked up and began to fly in the direction of the falling meteors. He knew he couldn't get hit because on Noivern it would be a super effective hit, and it is overall powerful despite not mega evolving Charizard. He then saw Noivern was going to get hit. "Boomburst!" The raven haired trainer exclaimed while putting his arm out. Noivern then shrilled a battlecry and through that, the sound wave dragon shot the beam that destroyed the meteor and got him in the clear, but Ash did not focus on Charizard.

"Gruaw…" Ash heard Charizard grunt as the fire type fell on the ground.

"Charizard no!" Ash exclaimed in panic.

" _This is bad for Charizard! Will Ash get out of this?!"_

"Finish it with dragon rush!" Ash witnessed as Garchoo began to glow light blue and then speed off towards the fallen Charizard on the ground.

Ash gritted his teeth until he decided to wing it, "Noivern sky attack quick!"

"NOI… VERNNNNNN!" Noivern exclaimed as he glowed gold and nose dived. Ash had to protect his face at the speed of Noivern since the gist of wind that occurred shook all of his clothes up including his scarf. Noivern then intercepted the dragon rush with amazing speed as he closed the gap. The two pokemon struggle for a bit and caused a large shockwave echo throughout the stadium, but then the two dragons fell in front of their respective trainers.

" _Amazing! Ash as always is not afraid to rival mega evolution power without any himself. Surely it will make more to down that Garchomp though, what will Ash do?"_

Ash then unleashed his glove and looked at Charizard. The latter smiled and pumped his fist as he narrowed his eyes and looked at Garchomp. "Keystone!" Ash blurted through the cheers of the stadium as he reached at his keystone and touches it with his index and middle finger causing the mega stone around Charizard and the keystone to glow and spread out five prongs. "Listen to my heart!" Ash then swung his fist into the air with his keystone out. "Beyond evolution!" The prongs then connected and Charizard began to glow white. "MEGA EVOLVE!"

"GGGrrrrrruuuuuuaaaaawwww!" Charizard grunted as he clenched his fists and accepted the power given to him by the mega evolution. The draconic fire type grew broken wings and a large fire that surrounded his face while the shoulder blades begun to develop sharp edges and a powerful look. The glowing then stopped and a roaring black and blue dragon stood before Remo and Garchoo.

" _I can't believe it! Charizard also mega evolved!"_

"How do you like this?" Ash asked as he put one hand on his hip. "Are you thrilled?"

Remo then pumped his fist and smirked, "I have been waiting for this ever since we battled."

 **At the stands:**

"No way," Trevor whispered to himself. "A mega evolving Charizard…" Trevor then smiled as he reached into his belt and touched a pokeball. He smiled as he felt the pokeball since it belonged to someone that he knew would be dying to battle the challenge before him.

"There it is," Brock said with crossed arms and a smile. "I can't wait to see how Ash battles with this."

Serena clenched her ribbon as she looked at the arena and resisted the urge to cover her ears at the now wild crowd around her and the entire stadium since it was evident the real battle was about to begin.

 **At the battle:**

"Archeops fly and use ancient power once more!" Remo exclaimed while pointing at the sunny sky above the two trainers. Archeops did not waste time as the rock and flying type propelled himself into the sky and formed eight rocks around him that then got launched at Noivern and the now mega evolved Charizard.

"Noivern hurricane! Send them back!" Ash shouted as he pumped his fist. Noivern flew towards the rocks that were launched in his direction and then made a wind gust go around him causing the rocks to be redirected around the sound wave dragon. Suddenly, Noivern turned the wind back and the rocks got launched at Archeops. Remo was too slow to dodge though, and the rocks collided with Noivern directly. "NOW! Flare blitz and sky attack!"

"Dragon rush and steel wing!"

" _Here we go again! This might be another aerial chase!"_

"GRUAW!" Charizard cried with intensity while making a blue fire aura around him and going up into the sky.

"VERN!" Noivern made himself glow gold and then go up and fly in a pattern that circled Charizard. The two dragons then split up and went in the direction of the stands.

"Rawr!"

"Cheops!"

The other two pokemon charged up their moves and began to fly into the stands after the other two pokemon. It was a spectacle that made the stands hold on to whatever was close since the speed caused a shockwave that made a large gust with the people watching.

 **In the stands:**

" **Boom!"** Serena looked upwards with gritted teeth to see a collision of flare blitz and dragon rush. Later, Serena heard another explosion that was due to steel wing clashing with sky attack. Serena then noticed how Charizard then began to dive down towards her with his blue fire aura still on him.

"Look out!" Serena shouted as she ducked and the others did as well. Charizard luckily saw that Garchoo went out of the way and then straightened out his wings to avoid crashing into the gang of friends.

Trevor looked at the Charizard and before Charizard could look back for Garchoo, the fire type snuck a glance at Trevor before diving down and rushing the middle of the battlefield and the light blue orb.

" **Clash! Clash! Clash!"**

This was all that Night and Leaf heard as hey saw the collision between Noivern and Archeops continuously happening. Night crossed his arms and looked ahead to see the two pokemon then separating…

Only to see four blurs of auras: blue fire, light blue draconic, gold, and silver… all heading towards the center above the field.

 **At the battle:**

Ash and Remo gritted their teeth as they saw the collision between the four pokemon coming to a close and then for there to be a huge booming explosion above the grassy field. The smoke that came from it was great, but Ash knew he could take this as his opportunity to win the battle.

" _A four way aerial collision! I have never seen anything like it before!"_

"Charizard! Grab hold of Garchomp!" Ash commanded while putting his hand out. "Noivern use your echo location to find Archeops and throw him towards the ground!"

"Get out of there!" Remo exclaimed with a panicked voice.

Ash just smirked as he then suddenly saw Archeops fall from the large cloud of smoke at an intense velocity and then slam into the ground. "SEISMIC TOSS!"

"GRUAW!" That was all that was heard as Garchoo was seen the same way. Garchoo also slammed into the grass with a large amount of power and with a large cloud of dust that enveloped all of the grass.

The cloud of smoke then disappeared and Noivern along with Charizard landed in front of Ash. The dust then disappeared, and Remo's pokemon had obviously lost consciousness.

"Garchomp and Archeops are both unable to battle," the referee declared. "This means that Ash from Lumiose City wins!" At this the stadium got filled with cheers as the scoreboard displayed Ash's name as a winner.

" _And despite the odds being against him, Ash still managed to fill in the win into the third round! Amazing!"_

Remo sighed as he recalled his two pokemon and then looked at Ash across the field who was embracing his two dragons. Obviously Charizard had returned back to his normal form. "Hey Ash," Remo started from his end of the field so that Ash could hear with the microphone. Ash heard this and looked back up at Remo. "That was a fun battle."

Ash smiled as he looked at Remo and said, "I enjoyed it too, let's have a battle again sometime."

 **At the stands:**

Serena smiled and pumped her fist as she witnessed Ash walking back into the hexagonal dugout. She would not have expected less from the raven haired trainer at this point. His batting was just amazing in her opinion.

"Yeah Ash!" Bonnie shouted with excitement as she jumped from her seat.

"Wow, two dragons…" Trevor said to himself as he looked a down at the camera on his chest and felt the round stone that was on the trigger. Trevor had not seen that much excitement on a battle and had grown hyped up.

"That is Ash for you," Clemont replied with a smirk as he looked at the battlefield. "Strong and unpredictable." At this Brock nodded.

"I agree," Calem said with crossed arms before whispering to himself: "So what would be my strategy to defeat Ash?"

Calem then felt a tap on his shoulder, the latter turned to see Shauna smiling at him. "Don't stress about it."

"Don't worry," Calem replied back. "I am enjoying it."

" _Now let's give it up for our two next trainers! Hunter and Nero!"_

Serena looked at the scoreboard to notice there were two new names. One she recognized from the day before, but definitely a new one with Nero. Still she was processing the fact that Ash won, until of course she heard a familiar voice snap her out of her thoughts.

"Pikapi Pikachu!"

"Alright Pikachu, you are right, Noivern and Charizard deserve a good rest, but I still wonder who I would want to use for my next battle, they could probably let my other two pokemon stay sharp," Serena turned to her right hearing the voice of the raven haired trainer headed next to her.

Serena and the other's faces lit up when they saw Ash, but Trevor was the most excited:

"Ash, why didn't you tell me that Charmeleon evolved? Better yet, could mega evolve?!" Trevor asked with excitement as he caught sight of Ash.

Ash sheepishly scratched the back of his head and simply said: "Sorry Trevor, it is just that I never had the time to tell you… Anyways, I heard some guy called Hunter and Nero are battling. I am hyped for that!" With that Ash sat down next to Brock as the crowd cheered once more. Ash then noticed the arena had come up to notice the ref looked a little familiar.

" _And the battle will be a 2 on 2 single battle with substitutions allowed. This will be an interesting match as it will be played in a normal rocky field as well!"_

Serena did the same thing Ash did and she gasped as she saw the ref as well. It was the same referee that had allowed Zweilous to attack Noivern viciously. Serena clenched her fists at the scene only to feel a tap on her shoulder. Serena noticed it was Bonnie who was a little nervous.

Serena sighed and forced a smile that Bonnie seemed to believe because the youngest girl looked back down at the field with excitement. Clemont, who was looking at the field also had his head down which meant that Serena could see Ash's face. Ash also had a similar reaction to Serena and he looked beyond Brock who was in the same position as Clemont to see Serena's face. The blue eyed girl and the auburn eyed trainer exchanged a nervous glance at each other before looking back down at the field.

Night and Leaf where at the other end of the stadium, but Night was focused on something out of the ordinary. He touched his belt to find that Decidueye's pokeball was shaking with intensity. Night went wide eyed as he looked at the field and then looked at his lap to exchange a glance with Jolteon. The spiky electric type seemed to sense Night's tension because he looked up at his trainer with a nervous expression.

"Night, you alright?"

Night looked to see Leaf next to him looking at him with a puzzled look. Night just relaxed and said, "Nothing…"

 **Back at the arena:**

"Eevee let's go!" Hunter exclaimed as he put his hand up.

"Eeeeveee!" Eevee cried back as he jumped into the field with excitement. Hunter eyed his opponent carefully and noticed something looked off when he saw how Nero was exchanging a glance with the referee who Nero knew as Rob. Hunter just relaxed as he saw Nero make his first choice of pokemon.

" _And like last time, Hunter leads with Eevee!"_

The crowd roared at this knowing that Eevee was obviously a powerful normal type able to stand it's ground.

"Machamp let's get this over with!" Nero commanded as he threw a pokeball into the air. The pokeball broke apart and then standing before Hunter was a four armed monkey that made a large battle cry that shook the rocks around Hunter.

" _This time, Nero decides to go with a Machamp! How will the course of battle flow?!"_

"Let the battle…

BEGIN!"

 **Battle music begin! Nero (Machamp) vs Hunter (Eevee):**

"Machamp, let's get this over with fast! Dynamic punch!" Nero exclaimed with a large amount of power and a pumped fist.

Hunter just facepalmed at how straightforward Nero was being. At that moment, Hunter realized that Nero, despite being the one that everyone said would win, lacked strategy and reasoning. Hunter just crossed his arms and said, "Eevee use shadow ball Machamp's face to hinder its ability to see!" Eevee charged up the dark sphere in his face as Machamp made his fist glow white. Eevee easily had enough rocky distance to safely shoot the ball and without effort, the shadow ball hit the face of the Machamp this making the muscular monkey stagger back and fall to the ground.

" _It seems that Machamp can't see at thing! Will Nero even be able to battle?"_

"Snap out of it Machamp!" Nero venomously spat at his pokemon. Machamp grunted in frustration at this and got back up.

"That is no way to treat pokemon!" Hunter retaliated as he heard this. The stadium went quiet at this as Hunter and Eevee saw Nero and Rob exchange a glance. "Why do you treat that Machamp like a tool?"

Nero just smirked and looked down, "I bought this Machamp, it is trainer for me, and it should be good enough to defeat you!"

"You… _Bought_ Machamp?!" Hunter gasped. "There is no way you should even participate in the league if you buy your pokemon instead of raising them!"

" _Folks! It seems that we have some tension rising down at the battlefield!"_

"Eevee!"

"PSH… no rule against that, get the right gym badges and enter, simple as that," Nero said while crossing his arm and putting his head down and then smirking at Hunter, "Use dynamic punch to destroy that pest of an Eevee!"

"CHAMP!" Machamp cried as he made his fist glow white once more and then he began to run through the rocks to then slip and fall again due to being blinded.

"Finish this now!" Hunter cried while putting his fist out. "HYPER BEAM!"

"Eeeeeevvveeeeeeee!" Eevee cried as he charged up a dark ball of energy in front of him. After a little bit, the entire stadium went completely quiet as the beam was shot at the fighting type. Hunter and Nero gritted their teeth when the attack collided as it caused a large orb of energy that matched the darkness of the beam to occur over Machamp and then riddle out an explosion that sent a shockwave through the stadium.

When the smoke cleared Nero and Rob both had shocked faces to see Machamp on the ground completely unable to battle. Rob gritted his teeth as he made the declaration, almost like he was cursing himself, "Machamp… is unable… to battle… Eevee wins…"

" _Amazing! And Eevee already defeats one pokemon! Just one more to go for Hunter and the match will be history!"_

"So… is your next pokemon artificially trained as well?" Hunter spat at Nero.

"Eevee…"

"You guessed right…" Nero said this as he recalled his Machamp and then pulled out another pokeball. "Braviary it is up to you!"

"Brraaaaveee!" The large flying type shouted as he landed in front of his trainer with a large battle cry that made some rocks in the arena shift. Hunter just sighed seeing the flying and normal type, but it was obviously still a threat, so with that he kept his guard up, especially since the audience was already cheering the battle on due to the tension that was going on between him and Nero.

" _And Nero is going to try and defeat Hunter with just his Braviary at this point. It seems that this Braviary also has been a pokemon that was sold on the market. Will this also have an impact on the battle?"_

Rob had gritted teeth as he signaled for the battle to resume. Hunter just then noticed that there was something going on between the opposing trainer and the referee. It was something that was more of like a… Partnership? Hunter could not think about how it was, but it definitely left a triggering effect on him as Hunter made the first move: "Eevee use iron tail!"

"Braviary counter it with crush claw!"

Both pokemon made their limbs glow white and with that they both charged themselves. Less than a second later, the cheers grew louder as both pokemon interacted at a stalemate that sent sparks flying out of the limbs. Clearly this was exhilarating to watch, but it made it so that Hunter could keep his focus on his pokemon. After some time, Eevee jumped back and backflipped to land on all four legs in front of his trainer. Hunter then put his hand out, "Use shadow ball!"

" _It is time for Hunter's counter attack, how will he do it?"_

"Dodge it Braviary!" Nero exclaimed while putting his hand out. Eevee charged up and shot the ball of darkness to be headed straight for the red, white, and blue flying type, but the bird obviously saw the attack and flapped his wings to elevate himself with more power towards the sky. Nero then pumped his fists as he ordered: "Brave Bird!"

"Brraaaaaavvveee!" Braviary cried as he made himself dive towards the ground and pull up in front of Eevee's direction with a blue aura surrounding him. The attack was about to hit, when suddenly Hunter made his move.

"Protect!"

"Eeeveeee!" Eevee shouted as he put his hands out into the air and make a large turquoise shield around himself. The Blue aura connected with the shield and it made Braviary go back into the air with with great power and frustration.

" _And a clash between two strong attacks! Amazing defence by Hunter!"_

"Superpower!"

Hunter gasped at this command since Eevee was still recovering from using protect and unable to dodge. Braviary made a red aura around himself and went in towards Eevee with great power thus slamming into the normal type pokemon.

"Eevee!" Eevee cried as he fell to the ground in front of his trainer. Hunter gritted his teeth as he saw this.

"Eevee, you have had enough, return!" Hunter ordered with a solid voice.

At this, Nero narrowed his eyes.

" _So it seems that Hunter is recalling Eevee. What will he choose to go with next?"_

"Eevee… vee vee," Eevee chanted as he slowly walked back to his trainer with obvious amounts of exhaustion in his step. Despite only doing a couple of moves, the super effectiveness was causing its toll and Hunter did not want to risk that.

Eevee was about to reach his trainer… When Nero made his move:

"Now use brave bird!" Nero shouted with a large smirk and crossed arms.

"What?!" Hunter flinched as Eevee slowly turned his head to see the blue aura going around Braviary as the flying type then began to charge Eevee. Hunter urgently turned to Rob and with a panicked voice said, "I recalled my pokemon! He can't attack! Tell Nero that he has to cancel the attack!"

" _What? It seems that Nero is attacking after Hunter recalled his pokemon!"_

Rob just looked at Hunter and smirked as he looked back at Nero and nodded. Nero then smiled as he watch the Braviary near Eevee. The crowd went completely silent as the attack was incoming, they did not expect such a dangerous scenario.

Hunter gritted his teeth knowing that this was not good, and with that Hunter jumped from his trainer's platform and into the battlefield. Running up to Eevee was easy since the normal type had ran most of the way. Hunter then dived to put himself above Eevee as he watched the blue aura enveloped flying type near them. Hunter then put Eevee and hugged the normal type in his chest with all his might knowing the attack was inevitable.

 **At the stands:**

Ash, Brock, Clemont, Tierno, Trevor, and Calem all gasped and stared wide eyed as they saw a streak of blue about to hit the trainer protecting his pokemon in the field. Shauna covered her eyes as Serena hugged Bonnie while covering her eyes in a protective stance hoping that the small girl would not get exposed to any terrible sight that could happen.

Hau gritted his teeth as he watched this. He was at disbelief and he could not bear to see anyone get hurt not after what happened to Lillie. It was heart wrenching for Hau to expose himself to this. With that, the green haired trainer hid his face in his notebook in which he was taking notes. Seeing the words that he had written, or even trying to focus on reading it to get his mind off of tragedy was impossible. Hau felt his stomach churning and his head feel light headed. He swore he could feel like he was going to pass out at any moment.

"Hunter no!" Leaf shouted with great agitation as she covered her eyes with her hands. She was the only voice she could hear in the stadium and obviously some people around her turned to her with great worry. Jolteon noticed this and hugged Leaf obviously knowing that the girl could not take the sight.

Night was taking deep breaths next to Leaf. He felt a lot of negative emotions swimming through him as he touched his belt to feel Decidueye's pokeball about to burst open. Night then had a flashback to his first league run in which he was having a similar experience:

 **Flashback:**

" _Jolteon return!" Night shouted as he saw that his opponent had landed a strong stone edge on his electric eeveelution. Jolteon began to run back to Night as the trainer then noticed that his opponent had ordered a hyper beam to be sent to the electric type. Night then turned to the ref, "HE CAN'T ATTACK WHAT ARE YOU DOING!"_

 _Night could see the ref's face be completely shadowed by his hair. Night then noticed a small smirk appear on the referee's face which told him that he was on his own. "Jolteon! Look out!" Night shouted as he ran into the dirt field to then see as the hyper beam was about to interact with him and Jolteon. Night dove on top of his electric type and closed his grip on him. Jolteon looked at Night with scared eyes as the black and blue dressed trainer gritted his teeth and said: "I will keep you safe…"_

" _DUEYE!"_

 _Night looked up to see a flashing light materialize from his side into his shiny Decidueye that he had trained since it was a small Rowlett. Night then noticed the hooded owl pull back one of the vines of his hoodie and pluck a feather arrow out from his body. Night watched in awe as Decidueye launched the arrow with a purple streak into the dark beam coming his way to then see the arrow go through the attack and hit the opposing pokemon thus causing an explosion at the other end of the battlefield._

 **Flashback end:**

Night held a close grip on Decidueye's pokeball to prevent the pokeball from opening. Night then knew one thing: Hunter was on his own… Unless Hunter had a pokemon that would be special enough to prevent the attack just like Decidueye did for Night back then.

Night kept looking at the field with worry as he noticed a flashing bright light appear in front of Hunter.

 **At the Battlefield:**

"SQUAK!"

Hunter looked up from the field to see the electric legendary pokemon appear in front of him with a determined face. The pokemon made a battle cry as he shot a crackling beam of electricity at the incoming brave bird. The explosion it left caused Braviary to fall to the ground and get up slowly in pain.

"What?! Zapdos?!" Nero shouted with wide eyes while looking at the scoreboard in disbelief:

" _ZAPDOS?! Where did this come from?! I have never seen anything like this ever in my life!"_

The crowd roared in approval. This was a huge surprise and it was amazing that so many people would have gotten their first encounter with a legendary pokemon right here and in person, live.

 **Hunter:** Eevee **Zapdos**

 **Nero:** _Machamp_ **Braviary**

Hunter then stood up without even bothering to go back to the trainer's platform while holding Eevee on his hands, "Use thunderbolt!"

"ZAAAAPPP!" Zapdos shouted with intensity while charging up an electric aura around him and then suddenly launching it at the flying type that was on the ground barely standing this causing an explosion of dust that made the electric and flying type land next to Hunter with great power.

Rob was still in disbelief as he looked down at the field and noticed Braviary unable to battle, "Braviary… is… unable to battle… Hunter from Cherrygrove City wins!"

" _UNBELIEVABLE! AND HUNTER COMPLETELY DEFEATS NERO WITH A LEGENDARY POKEMON!"_

Nero just recalled Braviary in frustration and walked out of the field through the dugout as the scoreboard displayed the winner of the battle as Hunter. The crowd cheered with intensity as Hunter held his Eevee close and Zapdos rubbed his electric feathers with his trainer's skin.

"Eevee," Eevee smiled and licked his trainer in gratitude.

"Dos," Zapdos cooed while being petted by Hunter.

 **At the stands:**

Everyone with Ash was relieved as they saw what happened, but Ash was extremely interested in seeing that there was an actual ZAPDOS on the field. Ash smiled at this as he then turned to Serena and noticed her smiling while looking down at the field, suddenly, Serena turned to Ash and the later found himself in a small trance while looking at her dangling hair waving in the slight wind and her ribbon on her chest glistening. Serena then sighed in relief and looked back down to see Hunter leaving his dugout and the field going right back down into the ground. Ash couldn't stop staring at Serena for a split second before then turning back down to see the two new trainers entering field.

Hau felt his head return back to normal and his stomach finally relaxing. Hau then took a deep breath before putting his hands behind his back and saying to himself with a nice big smile, "Well that was actually very stressful! I am glad he got out of that situation!" Hau then went wide eyed as he just witnessed his behavior before thinking of a pale blonde girl that he called his sister. Hau then frowned and sighed. "When we win Lillie's life back, I will act laid back again… But for now I have to stay serious."

"YES HUNTER!" Leaf cheered with all of her might as she hugged Jolteon in her hands.

Night turned to see Leaf enjoying herself with his electric type and found an SOS signal from Jolteon. Night just smiled at the spiky pokemon to then feel his belt and notice that there was still some tension with Decidueye's pokeball that was radiating with the slight movements of the pokeball. Night sighed, but then frowned as he looked down at the ground behind the seat in front of him.

"I am going to get to the bottom of this," Night told himself.

Little did he know, where he would start looking would end up in a larger and more problematic situation than he would have believed…

 **A/N: So that is the chapter! I hope you guys enjoyed the battle. Next time we will actually get to know more about what Night is doing and we will finally have a look at Ash's opponent. I can assure you that this opponent will be a good one! ;)**

 **Anyways, about that last line… I am foreshadowing something, and it will be next chapter as well… Not that I will spoil a lot, but expect this: A clash of** _ **blue lightning**_ **against** _ **raging fire**_ **(Make your predictions in the comments).**

 **Anyways! If you enjoyed, remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **I won't be responding to any reviews right now, mostly because I am tired as j am writing this. Still, to anyone that did review, thank you so much for showing support! It means a lot!**


	34. Chapter 34

**With Ash:**

Ash was taking a small stroll through trainer's village by himself. Serena and Bonnie promised to take care of Pikachu for him as Ash said he would go out for an early stroll. Serena specially had wanted to allow Pikachu to play with Kapi and Ash was slightly amused by that thought. Ash though, he wanted to be by himself during the entire walk because he mostly wanted to think about his team's potential for the next battle. He knew that whoever his opponent would be, it would not be an easy opponent because most people have been able to get past the first couple of rounds with a few pokemon.

Ash thought about it. He remembered watching a couple battles earlier that day and he remembered that Calem only used Chesnaught and Talonflame. Other than that, Ash also noticed that Trevor and Tierno relied on their starters a lot to get through the first couple of rounds as well. It was curious to Ash as to why people would go with their strongest off the bat like that, specially with it being that there could not be anything stronger… Or could there?

Ash shook his head, people were going with their strongest probably and Ash knew very well that Pikachu, Goodra, and even Greninja have not battled yet. Still, it was intriguing as to how he was able to get through with three of his other pokemon debuted and performed amazingly.

Ash then thought about using all of his six pokemon throughout the battles of 3 on 3. That way, when 6 on 6 came around, all would be well rested, but also not rusty from lack of battling.

Ash walked through the walkway enjoying the afternoon sun through the people. He wiped some sweat off of his forehead to then look up at a monitor mounted on a light post above Ash. Ash quirked an eyebrow as he looked at what it was.

Ash noticed the cloaked man using an Aegislash. This time, it was using shield form and using king's shield. Looking at this, Ash put a finger to his chin as he then saw Aegislash shift into blade form and disappear into the ground of a mountain battlefield. Suddenly, Ash saw as the Aegislash came up and slashed on a Scizor. Ash thought this was shadow sneak, but he was not sure.

Ash then looked down from the screen and smirked as he looked to the person in front of him. Standing there, he saw a teenager about his age with pale skin and dark blue eyes. Notably there was black spiky hair with a dark blue outline. His clothes included a black pair of pants and a black undershirt. Finally, the teenager also had a black jacket with dark blue streams that surrounded made up the edges of the jacket. Walking next to him, Ash noticed a Jolteon that was also staring at Ash with curiosity.

The teenager looked like he was looking for something. Well, after looking closer, Ash noticed it was mostly _someone_ this trainer was looking for. The person then turned to Ash and said in a kind voice, "Hey, what's up?"

"Nothing much really," Ash said as he then had his eyes drift to the Jolteon that was next to the trainer. It looked powerful alright, there definitely was some maturity in the personality of the Jolteon. Ash then looked back at the teenager and said while scratching the back of his head, "I was just taking a walk around the stadium."

The teenager smiled, "Same here, but I am just looking for someone."

"Who?" Ash asked perplexed with slight curiosity.

The teenager then smirked, "Just some guy that thinks that performing illegal moves is appropriate enough for pokemon." Ash then saw the Jolteon generate some crackling electricity on his spikes while looking in a certain direction.

Ash and the teenager looked at each other for a second as a gust of wind caused the other person's hair to wave a little and Ash's scarf to shake. "Well good luck with that," Ash said with a smile.

"You bet," the other person replied before turning to his pokemon. "Let's go look over there." The teenager and his electric type then began to walk away and Ash looked at them with slight curiosity.

"He seems like a strong trainer, I would guess that he is probably not participating, does this make him extremely powerful?" Ash asked himself as he then turned his gaze back to the road and began to keep walking. He reached the front of the pokemon center and then looked to the practice field next to the red roofed building to find something that made him instantly begin to walk in that direction.

 **A/N: Hey guys! I am back probably with a little bit of a filler that is meant to set up the next chapter. Next chapter (which I already wrote) is actually only focused on one particular battle of the Kalos League… and man is it intense! I am so ready for the league to pick up from where I started and I am definitely going to keep working hard.**

 **So Ash just had a little bit of a run in with Night. I probably attempted to make a little bit of a short encounter where the two would come through seeing each other and judging each other before they even got to know each other. Keep in mind that my OC will be in the league to watch and then probably have an absence before coming back to the story.**

 **Anyways, later in the chapter we are going to focus more on Night, but for now we have to focus on Ash and the gang, but first… Well, I wanted to admire this moment and take my time into putting on some more light into the story.**

 **Also, we will learn Ash's next opponent! He is actually going to be a really strong opponent for Ash, so I hope you guys enjoy the battle with him!**

 **So… A flamethrower against a spirit shackle. I am actually not going to say more than that for the rest of this chapter.**

 **Anyways, I don't expect this chapter to pass 5k words, but if it does… Well I'll be!**

 **Hope you guys enjoy ;)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 34- Ash and Calem's promise! A collision of powerful Titans! Night's revelation!

 **With Serena and Bonnie:**

"Kapi come on out!" Serena said as she took out her pokeball. From the pokeball came the female Pichu that Serena found to be excited.

"Pika?" Pikachu asked as he ran up next to Kapi. "Pikachu!"

"They look so cute together!" Bonnie cooed as she came up next to the two mouses and pushed them close together. "All that is needed is for Kapi to evolve and maybe we have a couple!" Pikachu flinched at this while Kapi looked away and blushed. Bonnie then quickly brought out her bag and said, "Dedenne, Squishy, why don't you play with the other two?"

"Nenne!" Dedenne shouted with glee as he ran out of the bag and slammed into Pikachu into a hug. Kapi laughed a little at this as Squishy came up next to her and cocked it's squishy head.

Serena looked at Kapi and smiled before whispering to herself, "Like trainer like pokemon… Pikachu is so dense." Serena then smiled as she looked at Pikachu and spoke up, "Hey Pikachu, want to play a little game?"

"Pika?" Pikachu asked with confusion as Serena and Bonnie smirked.

"MAKE OVER!"

"PIKA?!" Pikachu asked in shock as he tried to run from the duo of girls, but one caught him."PIKA PIKA!"

"Pichu pi," Kapi smirked as she grabbed Pikachu by the tail and stopped him from running. Pikachu looked at the three females with terror as they creeped up shadows on him and Dedenne and Squishy laughed historically seeing the electric mouse be surrounded.

Serena and Bonnie strapped Pikachu down on a seat as Kapi ran off to Serena's bag and pulled out a box. Pikachu looked at the box in terror as he then noticed Serena and Bonnie look inside and smirk. "Pika?" Pikachu asked with a panicked voice.

Serena and Bonnie then turned to Pikachu and the lemon blonde said, "So… you ready to look amazing?"

"And handsome?" Serena taunted as she also creeped up on Pikachu. Pikachu went wide eyed and suddenly, a cloud of pink sparkles from the two girls and the female electric mouse surrounded the male electric mouse. Pikachu strained for his life. After some time and a. It of sweat dropping Serena and Bonnie pulled away. "Ta-da!" Serena shouted with glee.

"Pika…" Pikachu replied with a dazed look as he stood up on the chair.

"KAWAI!" Bonnie smiled as she looked at Pikachu. He electric mouse was dressed up with a red rock star top and shredded pants. He also had a guitar on his hand which was supposed to mean that Pikachu was cosplaying a rock star.

"Pichu!" Kapi remarked with bright eyes.

"And… Pikachu is going to impress Kapi dressed up like this, isn't he?" Serena asked taunting her electric mouse.

"PI?!" Kapi asked in shock as she turned away and blushed to not be seen. At this Pikachu sweatdropped in slight confusion as Bonnie just laughed.

"Wow, she is just a blatant as you!" Bonnie replied.

Serena blushed and put a hand on her ribbon as she looked at Kapi and said, "So true."

 **With Ash:**

Ash found himself walking towards the practice battlefield next to the pokemon center.

"Alright Gallade, use leaf blade! Chesnaught, block it with spiky shield!" This was what Ash heard as he turned to the corner. The second he did he was met with the sight of Calem standing next to two pokemon that were straining in a stalemate. The two large pokemon then split apart and the juggernaut like pokemon smirked as the bipedal fighter had some green sparks shoot from his sides as he landed in front of Chesnaught.

"Well, Calem, what's up?" Ash asked as he neared the jet black haired trainer and the two pokemon that stood by his side.

Calem turned to see Ash and then smiled, "Nothing much, how about you?" Ash just responded with a slight giggle as Calem continued talking, "Remember the last time that we battled? We promised we would battle at the Kalos League, so here we are."

"Yea," Ash responded with a slight laugh as he watched Calem smirk as well as Chesnaught pump his fist and Gallade pull off a battle stance. Ash looked out of the corner of his eye to see something shiny radiating from Gallade, but he did not pay too much attention to it. "And we better keep winning so we eventually get a matchup together. I can't wait for our rematch."

"You're on Ash," Calem replied before his face got serious. "So, you know who you want to go up against next?"

Ash just smiled at this and crossed his arms, "Not you, I want to have a full 6 on 6 with you, what do you think about that?"

Calem smiled, "Alright, I guess I would say the same thing, let's promise to battle, but not now, during our time at the battles of 6 on 6 so that we have more fun."

"Anyways," Ash said as he looked directly at Gallade and smirked. "Gallade, I have a little someone that would like to have a rematch with you."

Gallade smirked and pumped his blade. At the same time, Calem chuckled a little, "Frogadier I am guessing?"

"No, not really," Ash replied as he looked down and grinned. "This pokemon would like to forget that it ever even was a Frogadier in the first place. With that, he has become extremely powerful, in fact, he is powerful enough to take down mega evolutions." Ash said this as he fixed his gaze on Calem's watch. "And I expect you to not hold back."

"I won't hold back either Ashy-Boy, but you better make sure that you bring your A game, that is all I want to battle when reach it," Calem replied while sticking out his hand.

Ash looked at Calem's hand and smirked as he reached out to it and grabbed it with a firm shake. The promise was on.

 **With Serena and Bonnie:**

" **Ding dong!"** The doorbell rang thus grabbing the attention of the honey blonde girl. Bonnie looked at Serena, but Serena just smiled as she went towards the door leaving Bonnie with the four pokemon. When Serena opened the door, she noticed that there was Clemont and Brock all covered in soot.

"Guys, what happened?" Serena asked in extreme confusion as she eyed them.

Clemont was the first to speak, but he coughed up a cloud of smoke in the process, "I guess the Clemontic automatic food cooker didn't want us to cook."

"Ugh, Clemont and his inventions," Brock wheezed as he fell over dazed in front of Serena.

Serena covered her mouth with her hands as she saw this as the raven haired trainer, who had just come back from his walk, appeared from behind with an awkward look on his face.

"Uhhh," Ash started as Serena put on a face of needing help. To this Ash nodded and helped Clemont and Serena pick up Brock. They carried the pokemon doctor to the bed and then lied him down with worried expressions on their faces. "What happened?"

"I may have tried to use an invention to make the food for us all…" Clemont then trailed off. "But it kind of… blew up."

"Oh big brother," Bonnie sighed from the other side of the room as she combed Kapi and Pikachu. She also had Squishy bathing in the sunlight that beamed down from the window next to the bed she was on and then Dedenne got away from her grasp to go near the television remote that was lying on the bed.

"Nenne," Dedenne cried as he turned on the television. Brock had gotten up as everyone turned to the sight of the television to see what was going on.

The television portrayed Malva and next to her was Diantha and Professor Sycamore. All of them arranged the same way that they were last time as the screen behind them showed all of the highlights from the previous matches. One of the highlights was Calem's Chesnaught using roll out, while another included Tierno using his Blastoise. Finally, it cycled through Damian and his Hydreigon completely causing havoc and destroying an entire arena.

Malva then turned to the camera and said, "Good afternoon Kalos, let's continue the coverage of the Kalos League. Diantha and Professor Sycamore have already discussed with me some of the potential predictions for who will pass the third round." Malva then motioned to Professor Sycamore and asked, "Based on what we saw today, is it possible to even predict a winner?"

Professor Sycamore sighed, "Perhaps it is still too early, but chances are that we could find a solid team that had registered that will probably come out on top." Professor Sycamore then smiled, "Ash's performance of switching it up and showing us his two amazing dragons really made himself a very strong candidate, but it is his strategy of switching up the pokemon he uses instead of sweeping with just one for all of the battles. I found that Hau and other trainers like Satoshi and Trevor have been using the same pokemon to sweep the league up until now, other than that, we could expect miracles for this league."

"Thank you Professor," Malva said as she turned to Diantha and asked, "Due to how you have seen the battles, what do you see that is special."

"Well, I like that there is much strategy involved," Diantha replied seriously. "One trainer that cost him this was Nero what's obviously did not outsmart Hunter despite everything. Anyways, I find that there are some truly strong trainers out there, and the fact is that it is just a matter a time before they prove they are the best."

Malva nodded as she finished this and there was a battle highlight showed between a mega Pinsir fighting a mega Beedrill. Malva then turned to the two and said, "In your opinion, what do you think that the mega evolution has done during this conference?"

Diantha was the first to speak up, "Well I believe that the mega evolution has really shown that it can be the strong bonds between the trainers and their pokemon. I still believe that if we keep this up, then we will have a powerful amount of trainers that will have the power in their hand."

Professor Sycamore then continued the idea, "Statistically speaking, this conference has already shown itself to have more mega evolutions than even the last three years combined! I am expecting some amazing things this year!"

Malva then turned to the camera and said, "Alright, now, the next couple of rounds show us matchups. Following the 14th battle, Hau will faceoff against Brayden, before the break we concluded that Hau would dominate the match, so let's move onto the next battle."

At the same time, the room darkened as the screen behind the trio lit up. Displayed on the screen it showed the empty stadium as the sun went up. Suddenly, the screen shifted to the time where Ash had his battle against his father. It portrayed Sceptile slashing Darkrai with a powerful leaf blade to then shift into dragon claw.

"You have seen him defeat legendary pokemon," The narrator said with an intense and amazing deep voice. The screen then showed Ash jumping out of Prism Tower with Pikachu and a Froakie. "You have see him risk his life for others." The screen then portrayed Sceptile defeating Mega Absol as well as Charizard defeating Garchoo. "And he has taken on Mega Evolution in amazing ways."

The screen then shifted to another perspective. It portrayed the same orange haired trainer that Ash knew all too well as Trevor. "You have seen him defeating opponents with only his Charizard." The screen then showed Trevor pumping his fist as his Charizard slammed his fist into the ground to make a large barrage of flame rocks shoot out of the earth. "His fire burns with strength."

The screen then shifted to put Ash on the let with one of the battle poses from the last battle he had against Remo. Next to him was his Mega Charizard X while across from him was Trevor with the same serious pose and seriousness that showed power along with his Charizard. "Watch Ash faceoff against Trevor!" The screen then put a large VS between the two trainers. "Tomorrow at the Lumiose Conference!"

The lights then came back out and the screen then shifted back out to Diantha, Professor Sycamore and Malva.

Ash looked at the television with a smirk as Brock shut it off. "So, Trevor, huh?" Brock asked turning to his raven haired friend.

Everyone turned to Ash as he looked deep in thought, but then put his hands behind his head. "Yes, that is going to be an awesome battle!" Ash then pumped his fist in the bed. "And I am going to win it!"

"Pika Pikachu!"

"Pichu…" Kapi sweat dropped as she got on Serena's shoulder and sweatdropped a little as she watched the other electric mouse act just like his trainer not even caring that he is dressed up as a rock star.

Suddenly, a large rumbling sound was heard and everyone turned to Ash with a sweat drop, "Well someone is hungry…" Serena chuckled to which Ash nodded.

"I think it is time we went out to eat," Clemont proposed as he then thought back to some recent events. "It's dark out so maybe there will be a restaurant that is open."

"So it's settled then," Ash remarked as he pumped his fist. "Let's go out to eat!"

"Pika Pikachu!"

 **With Night:**

Night walked back behind the stadium to find the same alley he looked at completely empty. Night sighed as he looked up at the sky to notice his hooded owl land next to him with a strong pose. Night turned to his Decidueye and asked, "Found anyone suspicious?"

"Dueye," Decidueye cried quietly as he nodded to Night. Decidueye then pointed in a certain direction with his wing and crouched down to then become airborne by this strong legs.

Night turned down towards his Jolteon and said, "Come on, we have to check it out." Night then rushed in the direction running with Jolteon. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed the same raven haired trainer he had ran into before exiting the hotel along with a couple of people. Night ignored it as he ran behind the hotel with his spiky electric pokemon to then be lead to a rocky clearing that had no one near since it was dark outside, and because the clearing was not part of trainer's village.

Night noticed it was a rocky clearing, but not much. He then turned behind him to see the large hotel towering, and on top was his sinister owl that had an arrow quilt charged up and aimed at a certain direction. Night noticed this and looked on to see something… or someone.

Night saw a man, he was older than he was, but he had a Pyroar next to him. His facial hair was also orange and in a mane like style to be similar to Pyroar. Night then noticed a black and dark gray with orange suit that the man was wearing along with large orange goggles that surrounded his eyes. The man was apparently using his goggles to scan the area for… _something_.

Night knew something was up, but he thought it had to do with the referee he had seen earlier today, not much, so he nodded at Jolteon, and the two began to walk towards the man.

"Hello there sir," Night started getting the attention of both the man and his fire and normal type pokemon. "I was wondering what you would be doing at this time of night out here?"

"Ah, so if it isn't Night, champion of the Soul Stadium," the man replied with a bow and elegant voice. "My name is Lysandre. I am surprised you don't know me already, specially since I know you."

Night just crossed his arms, "I am not from around here." Night then narrowed his eyes, "I want to know what you are doing here."

"Rrrrrr," Pyroar began to growl as he stood in front of his trainer in a defensive pose.

Lysandre just crossed his arms and smirked, "I am just taking care of some business, nothing much."

"Does this have to do with your little conspiracy going on in this conference? I am not an idiot."

"Jol Jolteon!"

Lysandre flinched at this as he looked at Night. Night understood the face as a "How does he know?" Look. Lysandre just took a step behind his Pyroar and asked while pointing at himself. "Are you threatening me?"

Night turned his head to his left and looked at the top of the hotel behind him. He looked at the top and shared a small distant glance with his owl and then looked back at Lysandre, "What do you think I am doing?"

At that moment an arrow that blended in with the night sky streaked at full speed and landed in front of Pyroar as a warning shot. Lysandre stood back agape as Night looked at man seriously. Night then simply turned to Lysandre and said, "Tell me what it is that you are planning, or I will not hold back…"

"I plan to give you nothing!" Lysandre retaliated with a venomous voice. Lysandre then surprised Night, "Pyroar use flamethrower!"

"ROAR!" The lion cried as he charged up a fire jet beam and aimed it directly at the duo in front of him. Pyroar did not hesitate as he shot the beam of fire energy right at Night and Jolteon.

Night was calm and did not seem all that dazed, he was surprised that Lysandre would just battle him like that, but Night knew what he had to do. Night pumped his fist as he began to shout his command, "Jolteon, counter it with thunder!" Jolteon made a large battle cry as he enveloped himself in electricity and shot it right at the incoming jet of flames. He crackling electricity interacted with the fire before there was an explosion in between the two trainers that made a shockwave of power. "Wow, is that all you can give me?"

Lysandre gritted his teeth as he heard Night taunt him like that. Lysandre just then realized that Night was not champion of the Soul Stadium for nothing. Lysandre then smirked, "You seem quiet confident of yourself." Lysandre then unleashed a pokeball on his hand and threw straight at the battlefield. "Go Gyarados!" The pokeball then opened and Night flinched a little as he turned away to protect himself from the pokeball light.

The shiny red water and flying type landed in front of Night and on the rocky ground with a serpentine like style and stood confidently next to Lysandre. Night then turned back to Lysandre with the later expecting Night to look panicked, but Night instead just sighed as he smiled confidently. "That's your army?" Lysandre smiled at this and nodded slightly as Night turned back to the hotel to see the hooded owl jump from the shadows and into the night sky. The turquoise feathers blending in with the dark blue sky.

"Dueye…" Decidueye cried as he landed next to Jolteon and in front of Night with a large gust of wind that made Night and Lysandre's hair wave a little. "DECIDUEYEEEE!" Decidueye shrieked with an ear chilling cry which still did not make anyone in the staredown flinch.

 **Battle Music Begin! Night (Jolteon and Decidueye) vs Lysandre (Pyroar and Gyarados):**

Night then put his hands out, "Spirit shackle and Shadow Ball!" Decidueye pulled back his hoodie's vines as he pulled it back like a bow and materialized the purple arrow quill aimed towards his opponent. Jolteon charged his ball of purple energy in his mouth before launching it with all his might along with Decidueye's arrow.

"Both of you use hyper beam!" Lysandre retaliated with his radiating goggles causing the red tint behind the two pokemon he was commanding as they charged up a dark beam to be then shot directly at the two projectiles launched at them. The four moves collided and struggled in the middle for a bit before it caused a large shockwave between the two trainers. Lysandre gritted his teeth as he then put his fist out, "Pyroar use fire fang!"

"Not gonna happen, Decidueye use sucker punch!"

"Dueye!" Decidueye appeared in front of the Pyroar with a large amount of speed before the lion could even begin to charge up its attack. Decidueye then slammed his black glowing wing right into the snout of Pyroar causing the fire and normal type to get pushed back with great amount of pain.

"ROAR!" Pyroar exclaimed while grunting at the hooded owl that was apparently beating him in battle.

Lysandre gritted his teeth at this as he then went on the offensive once more, "Gyarados use stone edge! Pyroar use fire fang once more!" Gyarados roared while looking up at the sky and then the blue barrage of rocks shot out of the ground with great power as Pyroar made his fire mandibles appear and then begin to run in the direction of the hooded owl.

Night smirked as he saw this, "Decidueye counter the fire fang with brave bird! Jolteon, let's do this, together!" Night then began to feel himself synchronizing with Jolteon as the spiky pokemon began to change color to match his trainer's black and blue scheme. The spikes also generated blue electricity that was violently crackling. Decidueye took fight as he charged the Pyroar while glowing blue and with great speed. When the blue and red head on attacks collided, then there was a small shockwave of power before both pokemon recoiled.

"JOL!" The blue barrage of rocks was what Jolteon, now black and blue, was avoiding with great speed. Jolteon then jumped into the air and cleared the rest of the stone edge as he made his electricity turn extremely dark blue.

"Now! THUNDER!"

"Flamethrower Gyarados!" Lysandre shouted with slight panic while putting out his fist. Gyarados was fast as he charged the attack and launched it at the charging up Jolteon.

"JOLLLLTTEEEEOOONNN!" Jolteon cried as he made his blue electricity streak down and collide with the red beam of fire. The two attacks collided in a little bit of a stalemate, but then the blue lightning began to creep up on Gyarados.

Lysandre saw this and looked at his Pyroar that was still engaged in a staredown with Decidueye and pulled out a pokeball this recalling the fire dragon. "Well Night, I had fun battling you, but you won't get any answers from me." The blue lightning was now in the face of the water and flying type. "Nothing will stop me from making my perfect world... Specially you."

" **BBOOOOOMMM!"** With that the blue lightning prevailed and the shockwave caused a large blue orb of electricity to shoot from where Lysandre and Gyarados where to then turn into a huge semi sphere of energy which exploded in all directions with a great explosion that caused a huge dust cloud from the rocks to pick up.

Night protected his face as Jolteon and Decidueye also tried to protect themselves from the explosion. To Night's surprise, when the dust cleared there was nothing there…

No Lysandre…

No Gyarados…

No nothing…

"Dueye."

"Jol."

Night sighed as he saw his two pokemon come up to him with slightly disappointed looks. Night just smiled and petted the two pokemon while saying, "You two were amazing, we might have not caught them this time, but we will get to the bottom of this eventually…" Night then turned back in the direction of the hotel to see that no one had really noticed what was going on. With that, Night took a deep breath as he then turned to his pokemon and said, "Let's go meet back up with Hunter and Leaf." With that, the trio slowly began to walk back in the direction they came from.

"Come on Decidueye, don't be too shy," Night suddenly said as he noticed his shiny hooded owl pull on both vines to hide his face.

"Dueye," Decidueye replied with a shy voice as the hooded owl then let go of his vines to make the face be revealed a bit. Jolteon laughed a little at this, but other than that kept a cheerful attitude as he walked in front of the group.

 **The next day:**

Serena and the group were all ready. Everyone was there minus two people, Ash and Trevor.

Serena could swear that her ears were on fire as she heard the cheering of the crowd of the hexagonal stadium stands looking down at the field just in time to hear the commentator again narrate over the battle that was being done at the arena. It was an intense battle and most notable a fire tiger had just defeated another pokemon in the battlefield that was getting light through the sun rays up above.

" _And Hau defeats another one of Brayden's pokemon with just Incineroar! We truly have one unstoppable trainer right here!"_

"He is very powerful," Serena heard Brock say from her right. Serena could not agree more with Brock, the green haired trainer down in the trainer platform was very powerful indeed being able to just sweep like that.

Serena though, she had a fact that she wanted to say though, "But Ash is stronger, I know so. When he faces off against Trevor, we are going to be able to see how he will be able to deal with a _real_ opponent." Serena then pumped her fist as she looked down to see Incineroar make his claws glow black and begin to charge for his opponent. "It does not matter who the opponent is, I know Ash can prevail."

At the same time as this was happening, Ash and Trevor were in the trainer's lounge next to the entrances to the dugouts of the hexagonal stadium. Ash though, he was watching the battle through a monitor with seriousness: He knew that Hau was definitely someone anyone would like to be going up against.

 **A/N: I can't believe I just made Decidueye's personality extremely shy. Actually, I can, I am trying to make Decidueye's personality match the same one of a timid teenager. This probably answers the question of why Night brought him instead of leaving him with the other four pokemon he has back at the Soul Stadium.**

 **Anyways, next chapter is Ash vs Trevor so be hyped up for that one because I know it is good (I already wrote it).**

 **Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it! Remember to R & R and I hope to see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **Ninjafang1331: Thanks! Glad you enjoyed!**

 **ArmorshippingFan: glad you liked it! Thanks for the review!**

 **Guest 1: LOL, disqualified? Let's see if someone can get him out of the tournament,but you better hope that he gets in trouble!**

 **Arnil: Well Ash is also part Alain so he needs the Mega Charizard X. But, as you may already know, someone with a certain Charizard will be battling ;). (Next chapter may have what you want!). Mewtwo? Not yet, or at least it has not crossed my mind for now, maybe we will see him sometime though!**

 **Guest 2: Thanks for reviewing, glad you enjoyed!**


	35. Chapter 35

**With Ash in the room next to the dugouts towards the stadium:**

Ash was carefully watching the battle on the monitor with a serious face. A boy with green hair was commanding a large tiger and from the looks of it. Ash did not think that Hau could be sweeping with just Incineroar so easily, but it was happening.

Ash watched as Hau put his arm out in front of him and crushed it while commanding a darkest lariat. Ash watched closely as Incineroar made his claws glow black and begin to charge the opposing Heracross.

"Pika…" Pikachu said while looking at the screen with a semi intimidated look. Ash saw this and looked back at the screen as Heracross was commanded to use megahorn by his trainer.

" _And it seems that both pokemon will charge at each other with a powerful move, who will win?"_

Ash watched closely as Incineroar grabbed Heracross with his dark claws by the horn. At this he flinched and then Incineroar launched his opposing bug and fighting type into the sky. "No way…" Ash mouthed as he saw the large tiger swing the beetle around. As soon as Ash could comprehend, Hau put his fist out and commanded for a flamethrower. Ash flinched as he saw the jet of beams collide directly with the bug type.

Heracross tried to stand up after that, but it was obvious that Heracross had taken too much damage and he fell over. The referee made the call and the screen blacked out the Heracross while also putting Hau's face to everyone where it said "Winner" it.

" _And Hau has shown that his Incineroar is amazing by completely defeating Roger's whole team with just a couple of attacks!"_

Ash watched as Hau recalled Incineroar and silently began to walk back through the dugout. Ash saw this as his opportunity so he went out of the room by turning the knob and going to the entrance of the tunnel. Ash knew he was up against Trevor next, but he wanted to say congratulations to Hau before he went on to battle.

Hau then came down the entrance with a slight look of satisfaction on his face. 'I just need to win one more battle and I complete my objective' Hau thought as he walked through the blue glassed tunnel.

"Hey Hau!"

"Pika!"

Hau turned around to see the raven haired trainer with the blue scarf right next to him as he left the dugout and slightly smiled, "Oh, hey, Ash is your name, right?"

"Nice to meet you Hau," Ash replied with a smile. "Congrats on winning!"

Hau shadowed his eyes and said, "Yea, thanks, but I won't truly feel proud of myself until I win the next round." Hau then started to walk away while holding up his hand. "I have to go do some stuff, see ya later."

Ash looked at Hau from behind with a dumbfounded face. He had no clue what Hau had meant, but he shook it off. He needed to start his own battle now and it was against Trevor. "Ready bud?" Ash asked Pikachu.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu shouted with confidence as he gathered electricity.

Ash saw this as the green light and he began to walk down the dugout. His heartbeat matched his walking pace as he noticed that it was time to battle someone that was a close friend this early. From Ash's point of view, he could see the lights and the strong cheering going on from the stadium as he approached the light.

As soon as he stepped in the arena, his vision went all white.

 **A/N: So I did want to give Ash a little bit of fear for when it came to seeing Hau since he had never seen someone with so much raw power before.**

 **Another thing to note is that this will be a strong battle between Ash and Trevor, there is no questions asked about this since this battle will involve one of the strongest encounters anyone could think of.**

 **Also, I know it may get a little repetitive to be using the same pokemon over and over for each league battle, but as you have clearly noticed, Ash's pokemon can do amazing different things with just four moves and in different conditions, so it may not be the same battle. This time it will be a lot more of a strategy battle with Noivern than a battle of raw power and this is also the debut of Pikachu in the league so be hype for that. If Ash wins against Trevor, then maybe we will see Goodra and Greninja sometime soon. ;)**

 **Anyways, enjoy the battle as I will have fun writing it!**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 35- A tale of a species with two mega evolutions! A shocking debut at the Kalos League!

 **Ash POV:**

I see my vision go completely white as I walk into the arena. The color then comes back to me as I look around at the large amount of cheering and a bright sunny sky that overcoats the large stands that are in a hexagonal shape filled with people. I see across from me as Trevor walked towards his trainer platform with a smirk. I smirk back as I take the step up to the trainer platform.

Separating Trevor and me is a large hole that would decide which field we would battle in. I was ready for anything. I look to my right and up to see the scoreboard. It looked prepared and fresh ready for the battle to start:

 **Ash:** (Pokeball) (Pokeball) **(Pokeball)**

 **Trevor:** (Pokeball) (Pokeball) **(Pokeball)**

" _We are about to have the last round of the day! Like stated prior, this match will be three on three and with a random battlefield. Let's see what Trevor and Ash will give us!"_

I hear the crowd cheer as I see a rising battlefield come up and fill in the gap between Trevor and Me. I see the field that is made mostly out of rock, but there is three large formations in the middle. Obviously it was a mountainous terrain, so it would be appropriate if I used my flying types, but maybe Pikachu could be of use to me as well because of his small size, we will have to see.

" _And the battle will be held in a mountain field! Who will our trainers choose to battle with first?"_

I see as the referee steps up to the field and puts his hand out while saying, "This will be a three on three pokemon battle. Substitutions are allowed and the match will be over when any three pokemon on either side are unable to continue." The ref then put his hands out and exclaimed. "Choose your first pokemon!"

"Noivern, I choose you!" I shout as I reach into my belt and pick out Noivern's pokeball. I then throw the pokeball out and it opens in front of me while revealing the sound wave dragon.

" _The Noivern that took out that Archeops!"_

I hear the crowd roar as I looked at Noivern and smiled, "Let's do our best Noivern!"

"Vern!" Noivern replies to me while smiling at me. I knew I could count on Noivern if I needed someone to get me through this rocky and unstable terrain.

"Noivern huh?" I hear Trevor reply. "Florges let's go!" Trevor then throws a pokeball and from it comes out a large flower like pokemon that was suspended in mid air and had pink flowers on her head.

" _Clearly there is a large disadvantage for Noivern. How will this battle play out?"_

I see the referee then put his hand down and shout:

"Battle BEGIN!"

 **Battle music begin! Ash (Noivern) vs Trevor (Florges):**

"I will take the first move!" I declare as I pump my fist. "Take the skies and use your echolocation to hide from Florges!"

"Noivern!" Noivern replies to me as he spreads his wings and propelled himself into the sky. I see as tiny sound waves come out of Noivern's ears as he navigates the mountains. I look over at Trevor. He has a smile on his face, it seems that he may have already known my plan the whole time to play passive as he completely surprised me with his command.

"Florges use misty terrain!" Trevor exclaims while putting his hand out. Florges makes a battle cry and from it she spreads out a pink misty substance that I looked down on. I noticed how it was covering my feet so I knew that obviously I needed to go in with caution.

" _And it seems that as Ash plays a hiding game, Trevor is playing a concealing game. Florges is increasing the power of her fairy type moves. What can Ash do at this disadvantage with a dragon type?"_

 **In the stands normal POV:**

"Interesting, using misty terrain," Tierno remarked as he put a hand on his chin watching the battle. He was intrigued as to how this was going to play out.

"I feel like Ash will get through this somehow," Serena said with a serious face as she watched the battle.

"I wouldn't underestimate Trevor, though," Clemont replied as he adjusted the glare on his glasses. "Looking at Trevor's camera, I see that he is probably got something hidden up his sleeve." Brock and Calem agreed with Clemont watching the battle as Noivern hid himself from Florges' view using the echo location, but the misty terrain was beginning to cover a lot of the battlefield.

'Ash, you better get through this one...' Calem thought to himself. It was obvious that he was hyped up for a rematch against Ash, but Ash obviously had to defeat Trevor and get through.

Bonnie then stood up from her seat and shouted out to Ash, "Good luck Ash and Noivern!"

A little higher up in the stands Hunter was watching Ash carefully. He noticed the fire burning in Ash's eyes and instantly became completely psyched to watch the battle between both trainers. It promised to be a dazzling performance.

"He seems like a good trainer, he interests me just as much as you do," Hunter heard from his right. Hunter turned to his friend Night and smirked.

"Another challenge I will have to defeat I guess," Hunter replied as he looked back at the field with stronger intensity.

"Yea, good luck against him," Leaf replied towards Hunter with a smile. "You would have to go through a lot just to defeat him."

"Heheh, I guess," Hunter replied as he kept his focus on the match.

 **Back at the battle:**

"So Ash, are you ready for your plan to get completely screwed over?" Trevor taunted as he looked at the raven haired trainer who quirked an eyebrow at the inference. Trevor then smirked and lifted his hand into the air. "Use dazzling gleam! Blind him!" Florges created an orb with her hands and then released it to go up into the air. The orb then exploded into a lot of colors that had flashing light and it blinded the audience that was watching the battle and Ash himself as he had to cover up his eyes.

"Noi…" Noivern replied as he began to fall out of the sky and towards the ground. The soundwave dragon the collided with the rocky ground that was covered in a pink mist and then struggled to get up. Noivern had clearly been blinded by the attack.

" _It seems that Trevor's attack has completely caused Noivern to be unable to see, what amazing power!"_

"Noivern, we don't need your vision, do your ears work?"

"NOI!" Noivern shouted while releasing a small boomburst into the sky revealing that Noivern could still use his ears.

"Great!" Ash said as he pumped his fist with a smile. "Now let's use your echolocation to airborne again, then use your sky attack to charge up a strong attack!" Noivern took flight again and flew around the arena without vision, but by using sound. Then, Noivern charged up a small battlecry that kept getting more intense as he began to glow gold and charge around the stadium in front of the stands mesmerizing the audience. The audience cheered as Noivern then came crashing back towards the battlefield and used his echo location to navigate cleanly through the mountains.

"Florges, get down towards the ground near the side of the mountain and conceal yourself in the mist!" Trevor exclaimed while putting his arm out.

"Flor…" Florges replied as she got to the ground of the battlefield and concealed herself in her own pink mist. Then Florges was completely invisible to everyone that was watching the battle, except one pokemon.

"That won't work, use sky attack Noivern!" Ash exclaimed.

"Noi…!" Noivern shouted as he nose dived into the ground and pulled up as the amount of waves that reflected increased in position. Suddenly, Noivern used his echolocation with his ears while flying and avoiding the mountains and then he found his target. "VERN!" Noivern shouted as he collided with the flower pokemon and then Florges fell all the way back. From Ash's point of view, he wanted a little bit more visibility so he made the next move.

" _What an amazing way for Ash to make a comeback! Using the ears instead of the eyes is something extremely risky, but Noivern handles it like a champ!"_

"Now, remove all of the mist with hurricane!" Ash shouted as he put a hand out. The sound wave dragon made a flap of his wings and from that there was a cyclone that appeared with Noivern in the center. Slowly, the mist began to fade and from that Florges began to also be carried through the windy conditions in a circular path around Noivern. "Now attack it with boomburst!" Ash shouted with his scarf moving around in the wind like a flag. Noivern stopped his large amount of wind and then flew to be in front of Florges and then reeled back his ears to make them glow white as he shot a white beam based on sound waves towards the flower pokemon. The boomburst collided and Florges got pushed back to be in front of her trainer with great struggle.

"Ges…" Florges grunted as she got back up.

"Amazing power…" Trevor muttered as he smirked and exclaimed, "I won't go down so easily, Florges can you keep going?" Trevor asked his pokemon. She turned around and nodded. "Great, use grass whistle!"

"Flor!" Florges exclaimed with great volume as she merged the two leaves she has on her body and then she put it to her mouth and began to play a melody that instantly made Noivern's flying begin to alter.

"Noivern watch out!" Ash called out as he saw Noivern start to fly in a funny directions and slam into the side of the mountain completely asleep. "Come on… think Ash…"

"Use dazzling gleam once more!"

"Flor…" Florges shouted as she launched the same white orb into the sky and then the orb broke up into many stabbing bits of light that charged the sleeping large eared dragon. Noivern took the hit in an explosion and then he fell back in front of Ash still asleep with definitely a lot more damage than before.

" _This looks terrible for Noivern, is this it for him?"_

 **At the stands:**

"This really does not look good for Ash," Brock pointed out. "Noivern is asleep and he can't really do much."

"What way will this battle go after all?" Calem asked as he saw the fight going down.

'Come on Ash' Serena thought nervously to herself.

 **Back at the battle:**

"Noivern NO!" Ash shouted in panic seeing as Noivern was being completely trashed around due to being asleep. Ash gritted his teeth as he thought of the way that Noivern alters the amount of sound that he gives out in his attack in order to make himself stronger. Ash then thought of a creative way to get out of this situation… He took note of how Noivern's ears were face down on the ground, "Noivern, I know you can hear me!" Ash shouted while he cuffed his hands. "Use some form of boomburst, don't even aim it!" Suddenly, under Noivern's ears, a faint glow of white occured and as Trevor saw this he flinched. Suddenly, an unexpected explosion consumed Noivern and a lot of dust from the rocky arena picked up around the sound wave dragon. "Now confuse Florges with supersonic!"

"Noivern!" Noivern shouted as he got Florges in a large barrage of sound waves that made the flower barely able to move and shocking Trevor with the sudden effect of the self using boomburst.

" _Ash's amazing battle style saves him, but how will Trevor react?"_

The audience instantly cheered seeing how the table seemed to be turning back to Ash's favor, but this did not mean that things would finish off well for Ash...

"Quick Florges, use dazzling straight through!" Trevor exclaimed while pumping his fist.

"Flor… GES!" Florges shouted as she charged up a large orb in her hands and suddenly launching it towards the sound wave dragon. Ash saw how the attack was defeating the supersonic and decided that he had to do something fast in order to be victorious.

Noivern quick! Dodge it and use sky attack!" Ash exclaimed while putting his hands out. Noivern stopped his supersonic and jumped into the sky with a great amount of power and then avoided the attack that flew past Noivern and exploded behind him on the mountain side. Suddenly, Noivern began to glow gold as he charged in for the attack on Florges.

Trevor though, he smirked…

"Use vine whip to stop Noivern!" Trevor exclaimed. Florges put her vines in front of herself and cushioned the golden glowing dragon to a stop in front of her. As Ash saw this, he gritted his teeth in panic. "Now launch Noivern!" Florges then swung the black dragon in her vines into the sky and let go. Trevor finished off his barrage of moves while putting his hand out and pumping his fist with another. "Use dazzling gleam once more!"

"Flor… GES!" Florges shouted as she shot the orb towards Noivern to then explode and pierce through Noivern in a large explosion in mid air that sent a shockwave through the stadium and causing Ash's scarf to shake violently.

"Noivern!"

"PIKA!"

Noivern fell in front of Ash completely unconscious and the referee raised his hand while declaring, "Noivern is unable to battle, Florges wins!"

" _And this battle ends well for Trevor, what an unexpected way to turn the tables!"_

Ash sighed as he took out Noivern's pokeball and made the fallen dragon get consumed in red light and get sucked into his pokeball, "You did your best, the type advantage was just too much. You did good damage though, so I am going to take advantage of your efforts, thank you." Noivern's pokeball gave one satisfied shake to which Ash smiled as he put the pokeball back in his belt. Ash then looked down at his electric partner and said, "Pikachu, you want to battle?"

Pikachu looked up at Ash with a determined face while pumping his fist, "Pikapi pikachu!"

"Alright then," Ash said as he looked back at his opponent. The raven haired trainer then pointed up to the sky and exclaimed, "Pikachu! I choose you!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he jumped over Ash. "Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted as he landed in front of Ash in the arena while gathering electricity in his cheeks with a smirk.

" _And Ash's next pokemon will be the debut of his Pikachu! What can this rodent possibly do?"_

 **At the stands:**

Serena looked at the scoreboard while holding her ribbon. It was pretty blatant that Ash was losing because he had already lost a pokemon:

 **Ash:** _Noivern_ (Pokeball) **Pikachu**

 **Trevor:** (Pokeball) (Pokeball) **Florges**

"Trevor really has Ash in a bad spot to be able to take down Noivern like that," Shauna inferred.

Serena, who was sitting next to Shauna looked down on Ash and said, "Ash will win, I know so, Pikachu is Ash's most trusted pokemon and with Pikachu at his side, Ash can defeat just about anyone!"

"Good luck Ash and Pikachu!" Bonnie exclaimed as she got out from her seat to cheer on Ash. "Win this for us!"

"You know, if Ash takes advantage of iron tail, he may be able to win," Clemont said as he adjusted his glasses.

"And if Pikachu uses that special move he knows…" Brock said while grabbing his chin.

"What move?" Calem asked curiously being next to Brock. "What does it do?"

"I really don't know how to explain it," Brock replied with a sweat drop.

Clemont also went in to fill in the blanks for everyone, "None of us other than Brock has seen it, but from what I have heard..." Clemont made his glasses glisten in the sunlight that was coming from the top of the stadium. "Electric overdrive is a very devastating move. Well, that is what Ash said when we questioned him about it."

 **Back at the battle:**

The ref called out for the battle to continue and Trevor made the first move, "Florges use another vine whip to grab Pikachu!" Florges once more summoned her vines and with that, she reached out to grab Pikachu, but Ash was a lot smarter than to just let Pikachu get taken down by a vine whip.

"Pikachu let it grab you!" Ash exclaimed while he pumped both of his fists.

"Pi…" Pikachu nodded as he let the vines surround him and grasp his entire body and lift him up into the air.

Ash then smirked and put his hand out, "Use thunderbolt!"

Pikachu smirked as he saw the command and began charging his electricity, "Pika…. CHUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu exclaimed as he electrocuted the vines and fried them in the direction of Florges. The crackling vines then caught back up with Florges and Florges got hit with a strong electrocution that left her glowing yellow for some time. Suddenly, Florges got back up slowly and dazed, but then yellow electricity surrounded her which indicated one thing: paralysis.

" _And Pikachu manages to get Florges in a terrible case of paralysis with one move! How amazing is this!"_

"Florges, use dazzling gleam!" Trevor exclaimed as he pumped his fists at the flower pokemon in front of him.

"Flor… GES!" Florges exclaimed as her paralysis stopped affecting her and causing her to charge up the orb in her hands and shoot it in the direction of Pikachu, who had landed on the ground. The dazzling gleam then shot out its piercing bright light and Pikachu covered his eyes to avoid being blinded like Noivern.

Ash knew he needed to make his move so he put his hands and shouted, "Pikachu use thunderbolt as a counter shield to avoid getting hit!" Pikachu instantly nodded as he began to roll on the ground and shoot out a beam of electricity that was in the shape of a tornado. The bright arena started to glow even more because of the electric current going straight through. The dazzling gleam then collided with the wall of electricity and caused it to get completely neutralized. Ash noticed that there was more danger and decided to go on the offensive, "Pikachu use quick attack!"

" _Ash just flipped the tides with a move I have never seen before! Now he is going in the offensive, this Pikachu really is shocking!"_

"Pika pika pika pika pika!" Pikachu shouted through the cheering public as he then charged up a sprint and ran across to where Florges was and landed right on her abdomen.

"Flor…" Florges grunted as she tried to get back up.

"Florges, use grass whistle!" Trevor exclaimed.

"Not this time!" Ash retaliated while putting his fist out. "Pikachu use thunderbolt!"

"Pika…" Pikachu shouted as he got back up and into the air while glowing in yellow crackling electricity. "CHUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu shouted as he let go of all the electricity he had charged. The thunderbolt struck the ground and made a zigzag pattern before connecting with Florges who was barely standing at this point. When the thunderbolt hit, the flower pokemon sunk to the ground and was unable to stand back up thanks to paralysis kicking in once more.

" _Paralysis really has Florges at a tough spot, is this it for the flower?"_

"Florges NO!" Trevor shouted with gritted teeth.

"Pikachu! Finish this with iron tail!" Ash shouted while putting his hand out. Pikachu jumped into the air towards Florges and made his tail glow white and harden. Pikachu then swung his tail around and collided with the flower pokemon. Florges was consumed in a small explosion of dust as Pikachu landed in front of Ash with a pumped fist. Florges was revealed on the ground when the dust cloud dissipated completely unable to battle.

"Florges is unable to battle, Pikachu wins!" the ref declared as he raised his hand. Pikachu and Ash shared a high five as Trevor recalled his fallen fairy type. Florges' picture grayed out in the scoreboard and it was completely even again.

" _Amazing! That Iron tail really gave the super effective hit needed to win the match and it did!"_

 **At the stands:**

"Yes Pikachu!" Bonnie shouted as she got up from her seat.

"That Pikachu never fails to disappoint me," Brock replied as he pumped his fist.

'So… That is the moveset that Ash is running, but there is also that one move that I want to see before I jump into conclusions on how this league could end up… Hmmm, I need to see who I can counter Pikachu with if I ever have to battle him, but what if it is Trevor that I have to go against. I don't think Salamence would be a good choice in going up against that Florges, I may have to go Manectric. Who knows', Calem thought as he grabbed his chin.

"Good job Ash," Serena said with a small tint of pink on her cheeks as she grabbed her ribbon with a smile.

Serena then felt a small poke in her shoulder and turned to see Shauna with a quizzical face, "Isn't that counter shield move that Ash used the same spinning move that you used during the masterclass?"

Serena instantly looked away while trying to hold in her blush, "What makes you think that Shauna?" Shauna saw this and decided not to ask anymore questions, but admire the flustered face that Serena was giving. Shauna and Serena then focused back in the battle and the microphone enhanced action that was being displayed between the two battlers.

 **Back at the battle:**

" _So who will Trevor choose to battle with?"_

Trevor looked down at this pokeball and smiled, "Go Aggron!" Trevor then tossed the pokeball and it opened to a bright flashing light that appeared and materialized to for shape of a large pokemon with steel armor.

"AAAAGGGRON!" The large bipedal metal pokemon called out as he stood across from Pikachu with a large amount of power. Pikachu looked at this pokemon and smirked.

" _And Trevor goes with an Aggron, let's see who will take the lead after this exchange!"_

"Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted while gathering electricity on his cheeks. Pikachu then looked back at his trainer who was admiring the sight of the Aggron and said, "Pika pika!"

"I know Pikachu," Ash replied with a smile. "So I see your Lairon evolved into Aggron, Trevor!"

"It has gotten a lot stronger than last time too," Trevor smirked as he said this. "Aggron, let's start this off by using stone edge!" Aggron then reeled back his body and engraved his fist into the rocky battlefield to then have a barrage of blue rocks shoot out of the ground and head towards Pikachu who was standing in the way.

"Dodge it!" Ash commanded while putting his fist in the air.

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he dodged the attack.

"Now Pikachu, go for an iron tail!" Ash exclaimed as he put his arm out. Pikachu made his tail glow white and harden and then Pikachu jumped into the air towards Aggron with the attempt to downcut the pokemon in the head. It was a tough maneuver, but Ash thought it was possible. Trevor though, he wanted to stop the attack.

"Iron defense!"

"Aggron!" Aggron shouted as he glew in a metallic color just before the iron tail collided. When the steel type move collided with the large bipedal armored pokemon, the attack did nothing and instead Pikachu got knocked back in front of Ash in the rocky field with his tail glowing back to its usual yellow color.

" _Trevor amazingly used a great move to prevent getting hurt with what could have been a devastating hit with iron tail!"_

"Now use takedown!" Trevor exclaimed as he threw his fist outward. Aggron then began to glow white and charge after Pikachu who was right in front of him. Aggron may have been big, but he was decently fast as Ash saw no way to successfully dodge an attack that big.

"Pikachu let's combine some moves like we did before, use quick attack and thunderbolt on yourself as you run and counter the take down!" Ash exclaimed as he pumped his fist with one hand and put his hand out with another.

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he glew in a yellow crackling aura of electricity and then began to sprint towards the incoming Aggron. "Pika pika pika pika pika pika!" Pikachu then came to close proximity to Aggron and gave it one last launch. "PIKA!" Pikachu and Aggron closed the gap and collided. This caused a large shockwave to go through the battlefield causing the destruction of some loose rocks on the mountain field and Ash's scarf and hair along with Trevor's orange hair both waved in the air as both trainers gritted their teeths.

Both pokemon got completely pushed back. Aggron fell to the ground in front of his trainer while Pikachu flew into the sky. "Pikachu let go of the thunderbolt on Aggron!" Ash exclaimed while pumping both of his fists.

"Pika… CHUUUU!" Pikachu shouted as he stopped shocking himself and redirected the beam of electricity to make a Z line around the ground before hitting the Aggron on the ground. Aggron got enveloped in an explosion. When the smoke cleared, Aggron got back up and made a battle cry that made Trevor smirk.

"So it seems that we are in kind of a stalemate," Trevor smiled as he shadowed his eyes and smirked while saying: "Let's change that... " Trevor then put his arms out around him and shouted, "USE SANDSTORM!"

"AAAAAGGRRRRRONNNN!" Aggron shouted as he collected the dust around him and began to expand the air around him. Suddenly, before Ash knew it, a large amount of dust and wind was covering his face causing him to put his waving scarf over his mouth and nose so that he could see.

" _Amazing! Trevor made a sandstorm which has Ash at his spot!"_

"How do you like this Ash?" Trevor taunted as he covered his mouth and nose with his shirt. "Use stone edge once more!"

"Pikachu get out of there!" Ash shouted as he could barely see the battle. Pikachu could barely see through the dust either, but it was obvious that Aggron could easily see since he shot the barrage of blue rocks at Pikachu. After a while, the rocks made contact and caused Pikachu to fall in front of Ash without any vision.

"Pikapi…" Pikachu grunted as he tried to stand back up barely able to walk. Ash knew that he needed to do something fast to cancel the sandstorm, or else there will be a huge amount of problems with the way that Pikachu would hold up.

 **At the stands:**

"This is trouble," Calem said with crossed arms.

"Trevor really did get powerful with that Aggron, I am surprised it even learned such a devastating move," Tierno replied with a pensive thought.

Serena grasped her ribbon and hoped that Ash and Pikachu would pull through, she had faith that whatever Ash and Pikachu could do could save the battle.

"If only Ash had a way of getting water…" Clemont remarked.

"Water?" Brock turned to Clemont. "That's IT! Electric overdrive!" Clemont and the others turned to hear what Brock had to say and Brock then explained. "When I saw Pikachu use electric overdrive, he made it rain!" Brock then turned towards the raging battle bellow and said, "That is the only chance Ash has to get out."

 **Back at the battle:**

" _Is it even possible for Pikachu to get out of this one?"_

"Pikachu!" Ash called out to his electric friend from the raging sandstorm.

"Pikapi?" Pikachu asked with a slightly panicked voice.

"We have to use it!" Ash exclaimed as he collected all of his energy as well as Pikachu. "Pikachu!" Ash then used all of his energy to say the next thing. "ELECTRIC OVERDRIVE!"

Pikachu smirked with all of his power and charged up an aura of electricity that could be seen as a glowing yellow spec in the large sandstorm. Pikachu then raised his arms and summoned clouds over the sandstorm.

" _Amazing! I can't believe that there is clouds over the stadium!"_

Seeing this caused Trevor to flinch and everyone in the stadium to fall dead silent.

"Pika pika pika pika!" Pikachu exclaimed as the rain that came from the clouds slowly got rid of the sandstorm and the arena turned into Pikachu standing in front of Aggron with a smirk on his face. Aggron had sweat around his face obviously stressed out that Pikachu was still not defeated. Suddenly, five bolts of lightning fell from the sky and surrounded Aggron making Aggron look around in panic. Pikachu then looked ahead and put his hands together causing the lightning bolts to close in and hit Aggron causing massive amounts of damage. "Pika pika pika pika pika…. PIKA… CHUUUUUUU!" Pikachu shouted as he then took both of his fists and engraved them into the ground and a barrage of rocks came out of the ground with electricity surging through them headed straight for the Aggron.

Trevor went wide eyed at this and shouted, "stone edge!"

"AAGGGROON!" Aggron exclaimed as he tried to engrave his fist into the ground and cause a blue barrage of rocks to come out of the ground with a large amount of power.

The two barrage of rocks struggled, but then the electric rocks raised the earth and caused a large earthquake of electricity to surge towards Aggron. As the attack approached the steel type, he went wide eyed to then become struck with a large explosion.

From the distance, one could see as the large arena in the middle of the hexagonal stadium made a large yellow electric orb come out of the center. " **BOOOM!"** the giant explosion was heard throughout the stadium and then there was a bunch of dust surrounding the arena. Everyone in the stands looked at the arena with curiosity waiting for the result of what happened.

When the dust cleared, Pikachu was shown on the rocky ground standing with a smile. Pikachu then turned to his trainer and cheered, "Pika pikachu!"

"Aggron?" Trevor asked as he saw his pokemon slumping against the side of the mountain. There was a huge dent in the mountain and Trevor went wide eyed watching as Aggron was completely unable to battle.

"Aggron is unable to battle, Pikachu wins!" the ref exclaimed as he raised his hand. Trevor recalled Aggron as the picture of Aggron blacked out in the screen. It was clearly a shifting battle that was occurring.

" _And Ash has retained the lead of the battle, what an amazing show of power from both sides, but it was clear that whatever electric overdrive is, it caused a massive impact in the balance of the battle!"_

 **In the stands:**

"YES!" Serena exclaimed as she stood up while grasping her ribbon. "It is two on one!"

"I wouldn't celebrate already…" Brock replied to Serena. "Ash still has to battle the last pokemon, and from looking at Trevor, I do believe that it will be a powerful pokemon."

"I know," Tierno replied to Brock. "Trevor has a little secret no one really knows about." Tierno said this with a wink causing everyone to look at each other with confused looks.

'That move… wow…' Calem thought with a look of satisfaction on his face.

Rows above Hunter was surprised. "Eevee?" Eevee asked his trainer as he watched Ash with a little bit of shock.

"Yea, Eevee, this is a dude is pretty strong to be able to turn the tides with just one pokemon. His team so far has been surprising, except Noivern, but I may see that Pikachu really is a powerful pokemon," Hunter replied to his partner.

Night looked at Ash and smiled, "Hunter, that Noivern just got unlucky with type disadvantage." Night then turned to Hunter and said, "Watch that dragon defeat your legendary."

"Oh please," Hunter replied with a smile.

Leaf then turned to Hunter, "Don't be too ambitious Hunter, you need to concentrate on doing well."

Hunter replied then with, "Yea you are right, I will try my hardest."

 **Back at the battle:**

Ash gave Pikachu a nice high five on the electric rodent's tail that caused the collision to spark a little. "Want to keep going buddy?" Ash asked his friend.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu replied as he got back into the field and looked ahead while gathering electricity.

Trevor smirked as he saw this and into the rain, he threw his last pokeball while exclaiming, "Go Charizard!" The pokeball went into the sky and opened very high into the air revealing the same draconic fire type that Ash has on his team. It was curious to Ash how something on the Charizard's tail was glowing slightly to the light. This pokemon then flew into the rain and stood in front of Trevor with a large smirk and a strong expression on his face completely ready to battle.

" _This is it! Trevor's last pokemon and it is a Charizard!"_

The scoreboard updated so that Charizard was shown and Ash looked at the scoreboard to check the progress of the battle:

 **Ash:** _Noivern_ (Pokeball) **Pikachu**

 **Trevor:** _Florges Aggron_ **Charizard**

The battle really was reaching its climax and Ash could barely wait for that to happen. Ash then put his hand out and exclaimed, "Are you ready Pikachu?"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted with confidence.

"Alright then! Pikachu use thunderbolt!" Ash exclaimed while craning his arm from the ground and back to a fist at his side.

"Pika… CHUUUUU!" Pikachu shouted as he launched the lightning beam at Charizard.

"Dodge it Charizard!" Trevor exclaimed so that his pokemon would not take any super effective damage. Charizard waited until the thunderbolt looked like it was about to hit and then jumped into the sky while spreading his wings and becoming airborne. The thunderbolt kept going and crashed into the mountain causing several rocks to fall from the top of the mountain and down to the ground. Trevor then made his next move, "Use flamethrower!"

"Dodge it Pikachu!" Ash exclaimed while crossing a fist in front of his body. Pikachu saw the jet of flames and then spin dodged up and over the flames in an attempt to escape the flames which he did perfectly and then Ash made his next move. "Use quick attack!"

"Dragon claw quick!" Trevor exclaimed.

"Gruaw!" Charizard exclaimed as he made his claws glow a green color and charge Pikachu who had a white streak behind him as the mouse sprinted. The gap closed and the two pokemon locked in a slight stalemate for a while until they both sent a shockwave throughout the arena and fell back in front of their trainers.

At that very moment, Ash felt as the rain got lighter, and as he looked at the sky he noticed that the rain clouds have disappeared.

" _Well there goes the rain, what will Ash's strategy be now?"_

"Pikachu, want to take on Charizard directly?" Ash asked his friend. Pikachu turned around and smirked giving Ash the complete green light. "Alright then, use quick attack and then bounce off and use thunderbolt!"

"Pika pika pika pika pika," Pikachu exclaimed as he charged up his power to go into a sprint.

"I won't let you!" Trevor exclaimed. "Wait for it…"

Pikachu started to get nearer to Charizard and the ladder prepared himself to grab Pikachu. As soon as the electric rodent reached the dragon, Charizard grasped Pikachu's sides and ended in a strong stalemate that made Trevor smirk and Ash grit his teeth. "Pika…" Pikachu grunted struggling to get out.

"Think Ash think... " Ash said to himself. "That's it! Use thunderbolt Pikachu!" Ash exclaimed while putting his hands out. Trevor flinched at this, but it was clear that Pikachu was weakened by the last battles since when Pikachu went to use the thunderbolt, Charizard did not feel very dazed. Ash gasped as he saw this and kept gritting his teeth.

"Throw him!" Trevor exclaimed.

"Gruaw!" Charizard exclaimed as he threw the rodent towards the direction of Ash.

"Now!" Trevor exclaimed with a pumped fist. "Use dragon claw!" Charizard took in his draconic green claws and propelled himself forward at great speed. With that he completely side swiped Pikachu in a strong hit that caused Pikachu to be propelled in front of Ash completely unable to battle.

"Pikachu!"

"Pika…" Pikachu grunted on the ground.

"Pikachu is unable to battle, Charizard wins!" the ref exclaimed as Charizard landed in front of Trevor with a fist curled next to him. At the same time Pikachu's face also darkened in the scoreboard which meant both trainers were down to their last pokemon.

" _It is down, the terrorizing Pikachu that took down two pokemon has finally been defeated, but what will this mean for the match, does Trevor have a chance now?"_

The crowd roared as Ash walked into the battlefield and grabbed Pikachu in both of his arms, "You did great buddy," Ash replied as he walked back to the trainer platform he was on. "Take a good rest, I have a great buddy that would like to take on this battle, so just leave it up to him and me." Ash then set Pikachu down to rest right next to him in the trainer platform at a safe distance away so that Ash could still move around in his trainer box.

 **At the stands:**

"Pikachu lost…" Bonnie said as she slumped back in her seat.

"It's not over," Serena replied. "Ash has one more pokemon which I know will be able to take down Charizard."

"So, this battle will be up to someone other than Pikachu, I wonder who it will be," Shauna said as she looked down at the field.

"This is probably one of the most intense matches yet," Clemont said. "No doubt these two will give it their all."

 **Back at the battle:**

Ash looked at this pokeball and put it in the front of his hand to show it off to Trevor. "I will be winning with this pokemon!" Ash then threw the pokeball and exclaimed. "Charizard I choose you!" The pokeball opened to show off a large draconic pokemon like the one that Trevor had, only that this time it had a large pendant on his neck with a blue stone which Trevor smirked to at the sight of.

" _And Ash goes with his mega evolving Charizard! How will things go for this?! I can't wait!"_

"I have been waiting to battle Charizard, Ash," Trevor said with a smile. "When I saw you mega evolving Charizard in the last battle, I knew my Charizard would enjoy a battle with you."

"Gruaw!" Ash's Charizard grunted as Ash looked ahead at Trevor's Charizard where there was a glistening object on his tail.

"So," Ash asked as he showed his keystone in front of his face. "I see your Charizard has a mega stone… And I see the camera too."

Trevor looked down with a genuine face and then raised it to meet Ash's gaze. "You will have to deserve this power!" Trevor then put his hand on his side and exclaimed: "Flamethrower!"

"Dodge it and follow up with thunder punch!" Ash retaliated.

"Roar!" Trevor's Charizard cried as he charged up a beam of flames on his mouth and fired it towards Ash's Charizard. Ash's Charizard patiently waited for the flamethrower to get close and when it was, he raised his wings and took flight. The flamethrower went under Ash's Charizard and crashed in front of Ash thus melting some of the rocks. Ash's Charizard then made himself a crackling yellow fist and flew at full speed towards Trevor's Charizard. Ash's Charizard then pulled back his crackling fist with the intent of hitting Trevor's Charizard with a powerful electric punch, but Trevor decided to fight back.

"Dragon claw!" Trevor's Charizard then summoned the green scaly claws and put them in front of his torso attempting to counter the thunder punch. Ash's Charizard reached close proximity and when the gap closed the two pokemon stayed in a stalemate where sparks flew from the collision. Both dragon types then went in front of their trainers with smiles knowing this battle would be hard. Trevor then showed off his camera and pushed the button where the camera trigger is. The camera trigger was a keystone though as prongs then fired out and began to connect with Charizard. "This is it Ash, take this… Mega evolve!"

"GGGrrrrrruuuuuuaaaaawwww!" Trevor's Charizard chanted as he began to glow white and transform. The wings behind the Charizard then became shaped in more sharp ways and Charizard gained two smaller wings at the lateral part of his arm along with a third horn on top of his head. Charizard then stopped glowing and revealed his orange coloring while roaring and throwing a flamethrower into the sky. "Roar!"

" _Amazing! Trevor's Charizard has mega evolved! But wait, it looks different than when Ash did it, how could this be?"_

The crowd began to cheer with intensity as they witnessed a Mega Charizard Y.

Ash then looked up and smiled as he saw the mega Charizard Y being his challenge. Ash then felt his skin getting warmer and from it he looked up to see the sunlight in the stadium becoming a lot brighter and powerful. "Drought…" Ash muttered as he shifted his gaze back to his Charizard. "Let's go in with caution Charizard!"

"Gruaw!" Ash's Charizard replied while pumping his fist.

Trevor then made the next move: "Use flamethrower!" His Charizard instantly fired off a large beam of flames that went straight for Ash's Charizard. From looking at the beam, Ash noticed that the flames were more powerful than any of the flames he had ever seen because of the sunlight.

"Use Flare blitz to protect yourself!" Ash exclaimed with a fist pump. Ash's Charizard then charged up a blue aura of fire around him and then when the flamethrower collided, it did minimal damage. Ash's Charizard then lost its blue aura and smirked as Ash reached for his keystone. "This side will get serious as well…" Ash then touched his keystone and the light began to resonate throughout the stadium. "Keystone, listen to my heart… beyond evolution… MEGA EVOLVE!"

"ROAR!" Ash's Charizard exclaimed as he began to glow white and the prongs connected. From there Ash's Charizard grew a fire around his head that represented Ash's scarf along with Charizard's shoulders becoming two crescent shaped pointed arches. Suddenly, the wings broke into more broken apart pairs and when the glowing stopped, a black and blue dragon was standing before a roaring crowd. The loudness was so intense that Ash felt his ears on fire.

" _Amazing! The black and blue Charizard! This is a battle of megas already!"_

 **Stands:**

"So a Charizard mega evolution battle? Wow," Brock said as he was shaking with excitement on the back of his seat.

Tierno looked at the others who had shocked expressions, "You see? Trevor has been training really hard to get to the top. I am not surprised that Trevor could put Ash in this spot. But the fact that Ash has a mega evolution to counter it himself is really going to spice things up!"

"Go Ash! Go Charizard!" Bonne exclaimed while jumping out of her seat.

"I can't wait for this to start!" Shauna exclaimed while shoving Serena little bit to get her gaze to Shauna. "Serena, make sure you root for Ash!" Serena gave a wink at the last part and Serena sighed.

Serena then stood up from her seat and exclaimed: "GO ASH! GET THE WIN!"

 **Back at the Battle:**

" _This is going to be intense, Mega Charizard against Mega Charizard… Who will win?"_

"Let's go first!" Trevor declared as he pumped his fist. "Use dragon claw!" Charizard Y then grew the green pairs of claws and attempted to intercept the other blue dragon that was right in front of Ash. The gap was closing and Ash knew he had to make a move in order to prevent a super effective hit.

"Use your dragon claw! Then light yourself up with flare blitz!" Ash exclaimed while pumping out his fist. Charizard X made larger green claws due to his ability and then closed the gap with the other Charizard. Both fire draconic pokemon stayed at a small stalemate until Charizard X began to surround himself in blue fire and the began to push through. Suddenly, Charizard X was able to push back Charizard Y who had retreated his claws back. "Now use thunderpunch!" Ash declared. Charizard X then lit his fist in electricity and flew towards Charizard Y who was still flying towards his trainer.

"Straighten your wings and dodge it!" Trevor exclaimed as he saw the potential danger. Charizard Y opens his eyes and then made his wings spread. After then, Charizard Y flew out of the way of the thunderpunch which caused Charizard X to look at the attack with shock in his eyes. "Now dragon claw!" Charizard Y then took down some green claws and downcut the Charizard X who then fell dazed on the ground in front of his trainer. Ash gritted his teeth as he saw this as his plan had completely failed. It was time that Ash found a counter attack, but how? "Use blast burn!" Trevor shouted as he put his hands towards the ground. Charizard Y did the same and from that a large burst of fire came from the ground and started encasing itself in the direction of Charizard X.

Ash gasped as he saw the attack that was incoming and said, "Charizard flare blitz!"

Charizard X ignited himself in fire with the expectation of attacking, but this was to defend obviously. As the attack closed the gap with Ash's Charizard, the large fiery explosion that occurred slightly harmed the target due to the strength of the heat in flare blitz. "Gruaw!" Charizard X shouted in pride as he gave a thumbs up to his trainer.

" _Ash's unpredictability stuns the strategy that Trevor was attempting, what is the plan here?"_

"Good job Charizard!" Ash praised as he saw Charizard Y still immobile. "Now hit it with flare blitz!" Charizard X glew in a blue aura of fire and flew towards Charizard Y.

"Dodge it!" Trevor shouted with a desperate voice. Unfortunately for him, Charizard Y was not able to move after it used blast burn. Charizard X then slammed into Charizard Y and a large explosion occurred as Charizard X went through and stared at Charizard Y with a staredown. Suddenly, Charizard X got enveloped in blue sparks and flinched a little before getting back his posture. Charizard Y though, he slowly stood up, but completely exhausted from the battle. Trevor though, he needed to get this done once and for all. "Charizard, finish this off by going for a dragon claw!"

"Gruaw!" Charizard Y shouted as he got his green scaly claws to come out and then Charizard Y flew over to Charizard X with extreme intention in finishing the battle.

"Wait for it…" Ash muttered to himself as he saw the possibility for a turn around, but it had to have the perfect timing. "Charizard reel it in!" Charizard X nodded at his trainer and waited for Charizard Y to get in range, and when that happened, Charizard X heard the command he needed to. "Grab Charizard!" Charizard X nodded and put his hands out and with that, the green scaly claws got completely blocked by the hands of the blue and black dragon. Then, the claws disappeared and Charizard Y flinched seeing he was completely trapped.

" _Ash's Charizard trapped Trevor's Charizard! I have never seen such a defensive battle from Ash's part!"_

Trevor flinched seeing that his Charizard was not able to move, "Get out Charizard!"

Ash just felt a small gust of wind consume the stadium and made his scarf lightly shake as he grabbed the front of his hat and exclaimed, "You defeated Noivern and Pikachu by grasping them and throwing them… Let's see if it works on my end too!" Ash then smiled and pumped his fist. "SEISMIC TOSS!"

" _It seems that Ash's Charizard has grabbed ahold of Trevor's Charizard, what will happen here?"_

Trevor watched in disbelief as Charizard X took off with Charizard Y in his arms to a high height. Everyone in the stadium was shocked as they looked up at the air to see the bright sun boosted by drought to gleam with the two draconic figures. Then, they all saw as the two Charizards came crashing down towards the earth. Charizard X at the last moment spun around and launched Charizard Y towards the ground at blinding speed.

As Charizard Y hit the summit of the mountain there was a large explosion of dust that then consumed the entire arena. The whole stadium went silent as they saw that it may have just been the finishing move. This was confirmed as when the dust cleared, the top of the mountain contained a regular Charizard.

The ref saw this and raised his hand, "Trevor's Charizard is unable to battle!"

Charizard X then landed in front of Ash with a large gust of wind that caused Ash's scarf to wave in a strong pridal position.

The ref then continued his declaration, "This means that Ash Ketchum from Lumiose City wins the battle!" At the same time, Trevor recalled his Charizard with a smile on his face. He was still satisfied with how he battled and overall, he really had fun. Ash's face then came on the scoreboard displaying that he won the battle and the stadium roared with cheers once more.

" _Amazing! The winner is Ash Ketchum despite the overwhelming tactics that Trevor used!"_

 **Stands:**

"Oh man Trevor," Shauna gasped watching her friend fall to Ash's Charizard. Tierno agreed, but he clapped with a smile on his face because the battle was truly that amazing.

"It really was an amazing battle," Calem said as he looked at the stadium and Charizard X turn back to his regular form. "Maybe there is so much to look forward to this league."

"Truly a battle of power," Brock said. "I would have never thought that the boy from Pallet Town I knew would change to be this powerful."

"Ash WON HE WON!" Bonnie exclaimed as she stared back at the arena.

"I have to say, that battle was impressive," Clemont remarked. "I never would have seen it ending to one final move."

"Yea, but in the end, Ash did have the strongest bond and a good way to counter Trevor, it really was a deserved battle for him," Serena replied while grasping her ribbon. Inside she was fangirling with the fact that Ash won the battle and would move onto top 32 to face the next person he could.

Up at the stands where Hunter was, he was smiling while nudging Night, "Not bad, don't you think?"

Night shrugged his shoulders, "I want to see him challenge me at the Soul stadium, my Jolteon would love to battle that Charizard."

"Oh goodness me you two," Leaf replied with a slight facepalm.

 **Back down on the field:**

"Ash that battle was amazing," Trevor said as he shook Ash's hand in the middle of the rocky field. "My run in the Kalos League may be over, but your isn't, so I will be rooting you you!"

"Pika pika!"

"Gruaw!"

Ash shook Trevor's hand back and replied with saying, "Yea, I hope to battle you again sometime, I had so much fun, right Charizard?"

"Gruaw!"

" _And with this, the last battle of the day wraps up with a great deal of sportsmanship! What an amazing battle between two amazing competitors!"_

 **A/N: Ok… I did not expect to top Ash vs Wulfric when it came to words, now I feel so bad for Greninja LOL! Sorry Greninja!**

 **Anyways, this chapter was fun to write and I actually wrote this Chapter after I wrote Chapter 28 because I wanted to experiment my style for the Kalos League. It may have been a stupid idea, but hey! It worked and I did not expect my writing style for the league to look this good either. Anyways, I hope that you guys did enjoy episodes 28-34 even though I am writing them after this Chapter LOL!**

 **Oh, you want some perspective as to** _ **when**_ **I wrote this Chapter? The friday before I updated CHAPTER 7. Yes, it may seem like I am talking about the future, but I actually am writing these very words a very long time ago… (I don't know how this works).**

 **Anyways, I feel like the Pokemon company trying to make a lot of episodes ahead of time for the anime.**

 **Also, guess Ash's next opponent? I already know who it will be, but I want you to guess who it is for fun… It won't be easy, I do know that.**

 **Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this battle and remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **Guest 1: Glad you enjoyed and thank you for the review!**

 **ArmorshippingFan: Glad you enjoyed! The promise between Ash and Trevor is definitely something I hope can also get fulfilled!**

 **Name Lananish: I am happy you are enjoying this fic so far. I have so much planned for the future, but this is how it is going for now! Thanks for reviewing!**

 **RedAce16: Actually Sawyer is not even in this fic (at least I have not gone around and added him in). Yes, I agree Lucario is awesome, we will see what happens!**

 **Guest 2: Glad you enjoyed dude! Thanks for reviewing!**


	36. Chapter 36

**With Ash:**

Ash was about to head out of his room… But something stopped him.

"Pikachu, look at this," The raven haired trainer said as he reached from the remote and sat in his bed. He heard some slight mentions of his own name, so Ash decided to turn up the volume. Just as Ash and Pikachu engaged in front of the television with decent volume, Ash saw as the broadcast room put its attention on the screen behind the three talking members to see that there was going to be an announced match.

"Pika!" Pikachu said in excitement as he saw himself appear on the screen while taking on the Florges and the Aggron.

"Ash has just proven that his team, especially his little friend Pikachu has power, but he must now face a strong challenge," the narrator said in a very dark and intense tone that got Ash's attention just as he saw Charizard once again slam Trevor's Charizard down into the top of the mountain to cause a large cloud of dust to form from the intensity of the move used.

Suddenly, the screen shifted to show a green haired trainer with a black top and a tanned skin commanding a large tiger like pokemon that Ash did not know too much about. The boy that Ash talked to earlier that day, which was Hau, was causing the Incineroar to make his claws glow a dark black color before rushing the opponent. "Hau will be fighting in this battle against Ash in an attempt to make it to the battles of 6 on 6 as well."

The screen then portrayed Ash with his team on the left while Hau was portrayed on the right with his Incineroar. Ash looked at the screen carefully to then see the "VS" symbol appear between him and Hau which made the raven haired trainer go a little wide eyed. He did not expect to be going up against such a strong opponent this early in the league, so it was surprising.

"The two trainers along with the other 30 trainers in the fourth round will be battling this battle for the 200k Kaleuros that gets awarded as prize money for being able to reach this far into the conference. The winners of round of top 32 will be the ones that will pass on to the last four 6 on 6 battles, we wish Ash and Hau the best of luck as well as the other trainers that we have just announced for the matchup," the narrator concluded as Ash was brought back to consciousness on the money that could be won.

Ash shut off the television as he sighed and looked down.

"Pikapi?" Pikachu asked with some distress as he noticed his trainer acting so privately to himself.

Ash turned to Pikachu and petted the electric mouse behind the ears to which the electric mouse cooed, "Pikachu, it is really just the fact that… Here we are…"

"Pika?"

"You see," Ash said through clenched fists. "I can't believe that not too long ago, we were in the streets of this city stealing to survive… and now…" Ash took a deep breath as he said the next part, "If we win the next round against Hau we might never have to live that way ever again for the rest of our lives."

"Pika Pikachu," Pikachu cooed as he rubbed his cheek against Ash's.

Ash smiled at this and petted his electric mouse back, "Pikachu, let's go with the others and prepare for the next battle… I think I have an idea of who I want to battle in this matchup."

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted with glee and excitement as he jumped from Ash's lap, out of the bed and towards the door. Ash chuckled a little as he jumped out of the bed himself and ran after the rodent he called his best friend.

 **A/N: Uh oh… Things just got a little… Or should I say… EXTREMELY complicated.**

 **Ash may not know this, but the fate of someone's life relies on the outcome of this battle…**

 **Coming up we will see how Hau is reacting to being put up against Ash.**

 **Again, I know you guys will probably call me out by how OOC I made Hau in this fic, but relax, I know his character and I have been able to give hints of his normal and usual character, specially in this chapter… I did not plan on making this chapter extremely dark. Specially that ship with Mallow, I totally knew I had to give Hau some sort of awesome motivation from Alola, but who knew it would be this emotional? Me neither, all I did was put pen to paper- I mean fingers to keyboard.**

 **Anyways, I hope you enjoy this prep chapter for the next battle, we will also get to learn about how Lillie is Hau's sister, I mean, do you think I am stupid? Gladion, Lusamine, and Lillie are the family… Right?**

 **Questions will be answered this chapter, so without further ado, let's get right into it!**

 **Real quick: Sorry for taking a while to update, I have been busy with AP exams xD!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 36- A burden of two hearts… Which one outweighs?

 **With Hau (Hau POV):**

I walked through the walkway of the stadium passing the many people that were walking by with great excitement. I had just watched his matchup get announced to be against Ash.

"Ash of all people, huh?" I asked myself as I walked with my head down and sat on a bench that was unoccupied.

Watching the people walk by, I could only imagine the happiness that would be brought to my soul and my family if I won the battle against Ash. I reached into my pocket and pulled out a picture. It was just a picture of three people, one person was me, I was standing next to my sister… Well, I call her my sister because we grew up together.

To be honest, no one knows, not even my grandfather, Hala, who was behind us with a hand around both of our shoulders. Hala was a fighting type Kahuna in Alola. He had tan skin, like me, but he was a lot bigger in size and had a yellow shirt on always. His stature was strong though, being a fighting type trainer has gained him respect on Melemele island and I look up to him… One day, I hope to surpass him too…

Anyways, next to me is my sister, Lillie. She has pale skin which can tell that we are not blood related, also her short hair is pale blonde which wraps up into a ponytail and her eyes are emerald green. I never would have thought she would be my sister either, but we always acted like siblings for each other and that is why I am on this mission…

I'm sorry Lillie… I should not have allowed Team Skull members to get near you like that. You fell into a coma, but that was not what sent me into this mission. It was the fact that your heart was hurt as well to not be able to deliver enough blood to keep you conscious. If you do not have his surgery done… Well, we will have to take you off life support, and I know I don't have enough time…

 _Why didn't Lusamine or Gladion even donate anything for the surgery? They are rich and I am still here trying to get the money!_

I just shake my head… This will all change tomorrow, I will defeat Ash and I _will_ save you Lillie!

I crush the picture in my hands as I gritted my teeth and shadowed my eyes… I have to win this battle no matter what.

I take a deep breath and then look up with a small smile on my face. I watch as everyone walk by me without caring to look and see if I was alright… But I don't care!

I smile brightly as I begin to walk from the bench I was sitting on with one thought on my head: _I am this close to saving her and I will!_

I then see energy surge through me as my inner rainstorm turns into a bright sunny day. I look up at the afternoon sun and spread my hands out.

People might be looking at me like if I was crazy, but the truth is that I am excited, I can feel happiness start to go through my veins once again. The finish line is right there and I will reach it, I know I will!

I then begin to walk…

But my motivation tells me to pick up the pace.

I am running…

No- SPRINTING!

I feel the wind brush against my long green hair as I run with excitement down the walkway and then I see a set of stairs to my right and I just smile even more as I dared myself to go through the stairs to run past a jet black haired trainer that was walking with a brunette girl by his side and a Chesnaught.

"Hey! Nice day we are having!" I greet while putting one hand behind my head as I pass them. They look at me weird, but I just smile and shake my head as I see the sidewalk I got on take a turn. I see my chance and I begin to sprint more! More!

…

Next thing I know, I am on the ground with a concrete looking back on my face and some sore scratches on my face. I take my time as I sit back up and then I begin to laugh at my stupidity as I put my hands behind my head.

Oh man, I miss the old me… In fact, I can't believe I am acting like this!

I look around and noticed that there are trees and a nice clearing so I lean back on my back and lie back down while looking up. I noticed every single detail of the sky and could finally see the clouds begin to take shapes of different pokemon: I see a Rowlett! I see a Cutiefly! Check it out, this one looks like a Trumbeak! I chuckle slightly as I sit back up and notice as I look around the world. There was light, the sun was up and it was a beautiful day… For once I did not see gray.

I got back up to my feet and then ran back through the sidewalk somewhere. I don't know where the road will take me, but I will battle tomorrow with determination!

I will battle with a smile on my face!

I will battle with a strong bond with my pokemon!

I will battle a battle that I will win!

…

But… If I _lose_?

I stop running and notice my vision change the bright color I saw around me to gray and black again…

"I… I can't lose tomorrow…" I say to myself as I feel my energy shift from being happy to..

Stressed, I am stressed. I feel as my muscles tense to have alarmed muscle tone because I changed from a stance of happiness, to caution. It is obvious: Losing tomorrow may- no _will_ be the end of Lillie.

I have to stay strong and extremely alert, because one move and I may be the one that is sent to a living hell for the rest of my life. I see myself walking lifelessly as I go back to the main walkway and see the people that are walking around the stadium with great movement. I shift my gaze to the left and I see the same bench that I was on before I began having my little…

My little what?

Oh yea, my little break to act a little childish because I am totally not stressed out for tomorrow's battle and the race to the 200k Kaleuros that it will take to save my sister.

I barely think to myself as I begin to walk towards the pokemon center, which oddly enough was not far from where I was. I go inside and I shift my gaze to the left to see the video phones. I look around and notice that everyone inside the pokemon center seems to be kind of busy with whatever they were doing. I find my feet slowly walking to the video phone that was closest to me… It was like if something was telling me that I needed to call back to Alola and check.

I sit down and sigh as I stare at the black screen in front of me. I look down to see keys that were right bellow my fingers and I look up to see the screen light up: There was only a line that said "dial" and following it was a blinking line. I eyed the blinking line as it taunted me to press the keys to Alola. I hover my fingers to lightly touch the keys. They were cold and frigid to the touch, but I set my fingers down with a swift motion and typed in the number that dialed to Alola…

Then it told me to confirm the number to make the call.

I had my right index finger hovering over "enter" and stopped myself from touching the key. I looked away from the monitor while gritting my teeth. I just want to escape this reality… It is too painful for me. My friends, my family, Lillie… Mallow…

I should probably apologize to the girl, she did not deserve this much pain from me. I should have watched out for myself more… Maybe I should have even brought Mallow with me, this journey would have been easier for me with a shoulder to lean on, or a person to talk to. Maybe someone to just cheer me up when I felt down -which was all the time- but it would probably have alleviated the stress.

I then feel a rush of energy surge through my right arm as my right index finger crushes the key that was under it and made the call dial towards Alola. I sat there with slight nervousness as I waited for someone to pick up:

"Hello? Wait Hau?" I heard a masculine voice say as I notice the screen light up. I eyed the male and noticed he had extremely dark skin and black and red hair. He had no shirt on and I could see his detailed upper body in front of the video phone.

"Kiawe," I respond slightly surprised to see the fire type Alolan trainer. "Hey, man, how have things been going?"

Kiawe sighed as he looked down, "Lately, I have noticed that Mallow has had a worrying attitude. She has been stressing out all the time. Sophocles attempted to talk with her at one point during dinner, but she stormed off after Sophocles mentioned your name…" Kiawe then trained off. "Her cooking has also been off lately, something I never saw on the impulsive girl."

"Kiawe, I…" I began with lamentation as I said the next part: "I know she has been worrying about me. Last time we talked, she said something that seemed like it came out of her deepest secrets."

Kiawe then put on a small smile, "So, she did tell you what she felt, didn't she?"

"Yea, at least that is what I think," I say sadly as I nod my head slowly. Kiawe apparently knew what Mallow meant, but I was still trying to decipher the code to Mallow's secret. Still, I knew I had to do something, probably to make it up. "Hey Kiawe?"

"Huh?"

"Make sure you tell Mallow that I will win the next battle and get the 200k Kaleuros for Lillie's surgery…" I then look at Kiawe with determined eyes. "And make sure she knows that I will also be battling for her. I could not have gotten through this journey without her keeping me here, so please tell her that I will win this for her."

Kiawe looked at me with a slightly surprised expression, but then smiled and looked down, "Alright then, I will tell her Hau…"

"Thanks."

"Oh, yea, one last thing," I hear Kiawe tell me as I turn my attention to the fire type trainer. "You better win tomorrow."

"I will," I say with a serious voice as it press the "hang up" button. With that, the screen went all black leaving me reflecting on what I just said. "I will not just win this for Lillie's survival, but for Mallow too!"

"Good," Kiawe replies to me with a slight bow and then smiles at me once more. "Good bye Hau, and best of luck!"

"You too Kiawe," I said while forcing a smile. At the same time, I pressed the button that ended the call and Kiawe's face was replaced with a black screen where I could see some of my reflection on it. I look down at my belt and I see six pokeballs. I felt them with my hands and I felt the strong and raw power that these monsters had and I instantly felt the motivation. Inside these six pokeballs were my most powerful pokemon. Incineroar being my strongest and the other two being able to give out a huge amount of power when I needed.

I get up from the video phone and I watch as I walk towards to the door how a group of five people walk through the door. I see one of them and recognize him as the person I am going to be battling tomorrow:

It was Ash.

I watched as the raven haired trainer with a light blue scarf and a Pikachu on his shoulder walked next with his two lemon haired friends, a honey blonde girl, and a taller tanned person walked past me. Ash's companions seemed to not see my presence, but Ash did… He turns his head as he walks and gives me a short nod with a smirk.

I slightly recoil at that…

Something about Ash… He has so much inside of him, I could sense it just by his presence. The amount of passion he had for battles amazed me, despite only seeing only his first two matches.

It was like if he had something for me…

Like if he would be my strongest opponent.

I noticed Ash turn his gaze away from me and walk towards Nurse Joy with the others. Nurse Joy happily offered to take care of his pokemon for him. As I then walked through the door to be outside.

I shook my head. There was no way Ash would be my strongest opponent, that implication sounds like complete bull crap to me…

I will win tomorrow… For Lillie's sake… and so that Mallow can stop worrying about me.

 **With Calem:**

"Gaaaaa! LADE!"

"TOXIC!"

" **CLASH!"**

Calem watched closely as his Gallade and Toxicroak exchanged blows. It was a collision of poison jab against leaf blade and every time the attacks collides, it caused sparks to shoot out in all directions. Calem watched as another teenager with a Jolteon came up near him and watched his two bipedal fighting types spar with each other in the middle of the battle field. Calem turned to his right and saw the teenager also smiling down at the battle.

"Like what you see?" Calem asked as he turned to the teenager.

The teenager smirked and nodded silently as his Jolteon kept making electricity on his spikes spark around with a little bit of excitement. The boy that Calem noticed was wearing a mostly black and blue attire, looked at Calem and spoke up, "Yea, it looks powerful, specially with how your Gallade is able to avoid getting poisoned despite coming into contact with a poison jab like that."

"Jol," Jolteon remarked as he looked interested in the sparring. He also thought the collision was very interesting between the two bipedal fighting types.

"Really?" Calem replied as he felt a smirk coming on. Calem then decided to ask something to the person next to him, "So, are you participating?"

"Not really," The boy replied as he sighed. "I wish I would though, but I already did my share of battling at a league." The person then scratched his face and turned to Calem, "I didn't even bring my full team."

"Too bad," Calem sighed slightly as he then had a little lightbulb go off in his head, "Hey, how about a battle, just a one on one, you use Jolteon and I go with one of my other pokemon."

The person and his Jolteon exchanged a slight glance. Then Calem watched as the person with spiky black hair looked at the field and then looked at the ground with a slight chuckle before turning back to Calem. "You are an eager one, tell you what, if that pokemon can defeat my Jolteon in a race around the battlefield, then you can get a battle."

Calem smiled as he then turned to his two sparing pokemon, "Toxicroak, Gallade, come over here!" The two fighting types stopped sparing and looked at Calem. They then began to walk towards Calem and had a curious expression as they noticed the foreign trainer that was talking with Calem. Toxicroak went up to Calem and the later talked a little with the frog pokemon, but Gallade instead went close to the other person. Gallade cocked his head a little as he watched the person smile at the blade pokemon.

"Yo Gallade, get over here," Calem said with a slight bit of amusement. Gallade turned away from the other trainer and then went up to Calem.

"Alright Jolteon," the other trainer said as he kneeled down in front of Jolteon. "You just run as fast as you can alright, not many can stand a chance against you, despite them supposed to be faster, just remember your training."

"Teon!" Jolteon nodded with a warm smile as his trainer passed a hand through his spiky fur.

"Alright Manectric, come on out," The trainer heard Calem say. The pokeball Calem had opened to reveal a yellow and blue pokemon that sparked electricity.

The trainer saw this and smiled, "So, that will be what you are racing me with today?"

"Yes indeed," Calem responded with a grin.

"Alright then, Jolteon, stand next to Manectric," The teenager said. Calem watched curiously as Jolteon went up to his Manectric and stood next to it. Calem then noticed the boy look at Manectric for a second and simply say: "This race is over before it even began."

"Gallade?"

"Toxic?"

"Mane?"

"Huh?" Was all Calem could say with a perplexed tone as he saw Jolteon return to his trainer. "Wait, what was that all about?"

The teenager smirked as he turned his back towards Calem and his pokemon and simply said: "Your Manectric has so much to learn. One thing you should probably try is getting him to take laps around the battlefield in order to build up his speed." The teenager then took a couple steps out before nearing the corner he was going to make and then said, "Also, your Gallade should probably work on using psycho cut, but instead of actually firing off the disk like he should do, make it so that his psycho cut is charged up to an immense size."

"W-wait, how do you k-know that Gallade knows…?"

The person and his Jolteon were gone before that even happened and Calem just turned back to his pokemon and shook his head. "Alright, Manectric, start running! Gallade try making that super charged psycho cut, I want to see what that is all about!"

"Gal!"

"Mane!"

 **With Hunter and Leaf:**

"Leaf?" Hunter asked as he sat back on his bed with Eevee on his hands. The silver haired girl was in the bed next to him, but she was sitting up, and at the same time she was reading a book she had in her hands. Hunter did not know what she was reading, but Leaf looked up and cocked her head telling Hunter that he was listening. "You know… If I win the next match, I will win 200k Kaleuros… What do you think I should use them for?"

Leaf just sighed as she heard this and then smiled at Hunter. "You have to be wise with it, remember to not spend it all at once on something stupid."

"Yea, maybe I should just get a ticket to go to a far away region and maybe become champion and settle there," Hunter replied with a small smile appearing on his face.

"Settle? Hey, what is in it for me?" Leaf pouted as she leaned forward slowly inching towards Hunter.

"Huh? What do you mean by that?" Hunter suddenly asked slightly perplexed by what Leaf was implying.

"Uuuuhhhh," Leaf replied embarrassed as she felt her face turn very red. Hunter did not see it, but Eevee looked at Leaf and jumped on her lap. "H-hey, Eevee? What's up?"

"Eeveee!" Eevee replied as she snuggled his head with her neck. Leaf was seeming to enjoy this because very easily, her blush began to be replaced from embarrassment, to fun.

"Eevee, cut it out," Leaf replied between laughter as Hunter sat back up in the bed and smiled at the two as the door to the hotel room opened and in came two individuals.

"Jolteon!"

"Hey guys! I am back!" Night said as he walked into the room and went to the duo that were still in bed. Night then looked at the book that Leaf was reading and smiled at her as he said, "Looks like a good book."

"Yea," Leaf said while putting a hand behind her head. "It's a nice story, about the legend of Groudon and Kyogre, and how they struggled against each other for so long until Rayquaza shed the light among both pokemon."

"Just what I would expect you to read, Leaf," Night responded with a chuckle as he sat next to Hunter. "Alright Hunter, so what is the plan for the next match?"

Hunter just sighed, "I am just going up against some guy with only steel types. I am just going to use Blaziken during this match."

Night just sighed as he heard this, "Are you sure that Blaziken can take down three pokemon on his own like that?"

Hunter looked down at the bed and said, "I am just sweeping the rounds of three on three with all my power, and then in the rounds of 6 on 6 expect me to be more on the switching game, that is my main strategy." Hunter then got up and petted his brown furry pokemon. "Isn't that right Eevee?"

"Eevee!" Eevee replied with glee as he got up and embraced his trainer.

"Alright Eevee, chill dude!" Hunter laughed as he returned the embrace with a slightly startled appearance. At this, Leaf and Night smiled, but the former held a slight blush in her face as she saw it.

 **With Ashura (At around Midnight):**

Ashura kept his cloak on as he kept himself binding behind the hotel under a bush. He looked both ways and noticed the coast was clear so he slowly made his way towards the pavement through which no one was walking on because it was the middle of the night at this point.

Ashura removed his cloak and let his brown hair get exposed to the air of the dark night sky for once. He then felt something tickle him as he then looked to his side to notice a small electric rodent with a thunderbolt shaped tail hop out of his tail and down into the ground.

"Pikachu pika?" The small mouse called out while quirking his head.

"Not now Pika, I am just taking a small stroll by myself," Ashura said with a sigh as he petted the electric mouse. The rodent cooed a little to Ashura's action, but then understood that Ashura was feeling like taking some fresh air.

"Pika?" Pika then looked outward to then notice a green haired trainer pacing around a bench. Around him was darkness, but then in the center was a street lamp that was the only thing illuminating him.

"Sigh," Ashura told himself as he began to walk in the direction of the green haired trainer. Stepping into the light, the trained flinched and looked at Ashura with awe as the later revealed his identity to the person. "Hey, what are you doing at this time of night?" Ashura asked the boy.

"Uhhhh," The trainer replied with a slight intimidation.

Ashura noticed this and signaled for Pika to comfort the boy. Pika did just that as he skipped up the bench and into the trainer's hands with a coo. The boy petted the Pikachu with care, but Ash noticed there was a lack of emotion. "What is your name, son?" Ashura asked as he sat down next to the boy.

"... Hau," the green haired trainer with the Incineroar partner replied shyly. Seeing Ashura sit down next to him, Hau scooted slightly away from the raven haired man. Hau did not understand what the man he was talking to at this time, but he was not feeling completely safe.

"My name is Satoshi, pleasure to meet you," Ashura said with a chuckle as he called himself out for the nickname he was given.

Hau went wide eyed at this and then asked, "Wait, are you the guy that wears the cloak and sweeps battles easily?"

Ashura gave a small chuckle at this and said, "I was not expecting to be recognized in such a weird way, but yes… I am that guy."

Hau sighed, at least he would only have to face Ash instead of Ashura for the battle that mattered to him, so he was not worried about Ashura potentially knocking him out. "Anyways, why are you even talking to me?"

"I thought you needed someone to talk to," Ashura said with a genuine voice. "It's been awhile since I sat down and did this for my son." Ashura then looked down, "Maybe this league conference will be the way I am able to reconnect with him after all of this time."

"Wow, I didn't know you had a reason to come here, specially your son, he must be hurting for you to try and fix a mistake you made," Hau replied with a chuckle. "I have to win the next battle, if I lose, then I will lose so much."

Ashura went wide eyed as he heard this, he then stood up while looking down in understanding as Pika hopped on his shoulder. Ashura then looked back at Hau and nodded as in knowing the struggle that the green haired trainer was going through. Ashura then turned his back towards Hau and said, "Good luck against my son, you will need it…"

"Wait? What?" Hau asked in perplexity.

At that very moment a gust of wind blew as Ashura stepped into the darkness that made a chill go up Hau's spine.

"Mr. Satoshi wait!" Hau called out into the darkness….

There was no response.

 **A/N: Alright, we have a large battle coming up next chapter.**

 **Lillie's fate will be revealed next chapter: Will she live? (Hau win). Or will she die? (Ash wins). This will all be uncovered next chapter.**

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter, but remember that this chapter sets up the next one, so I hope you are hyped for that!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you again next time!**


	37. Chapter 37

**At the stands:**

" _And what an amazing sweep with Chesnaught from Calem! And the boy with the Juggernaut grass type has won one of the jackpots of prize money while securing a spot in the round of top 16!"_

Serena looked down at the battlefield in front of her to notice as Calem recalled his Chesnaught to then thank his opponent and walk back through the dugout. Serena looked to her left and noticed that Shauna was smiling with a bright smile. "So he won again," Serena heard Ash say from her left over the sounds of the stands cheering on for Calem's victory. "We promised to have a rematch, and I will definitely not be losing this time."

"Pika pika!" Pikachu smirked while pumping his fists.

Serena put a hand to her mouth and giggled a little before turning to Ash and saying, "Hey, Ash, isn't your match next?"

"Huh?" Ash asked until realization hit him. "Oh man! I have to run!" Ash then got up with such a strong force that even Pikachu struggled a little to hold on.

"Ash, make sure you win this battle!" Clemont said with a large smile as he passed by the lemon blonde boy with glasses. Bonnie and Brock also gave Ash a nice thumbs up before Trevor and Tierno also wished Ash good luck. The scarfed raven haired trained and his Pikachu then turned to the right at the set of stands and began to run up the stairs until he saw the exit of the stands. He then looked back at the battlefield and noticed that the scoreboard that had Calem's face as the winner of the match changed to Hau and himself. At this Ash smirked and walked up into the hexagonal hallway.

"Alright Pikachu," Ash said as he walked down the hallway that had a blue tint and a hexagonal shape along with yellow lights that illuminated the way. "I feel motivated to win this battle."

"Pika Pikachu," Pikachu replied with a fist pump that made Ash chuckle a little bit.

"Pikachu, because I want to win this battle with style," Ash then felt his belt with his hand and felt every single pokeball until two stood out to him. Ash then reached a corner at which he turned right. "I am going to lead with you, are you ready?"

"Pika Pikachu!" Pikachu cried with excitement as he gripped Ash's shirt a little stronger.

"Hey Ash!" Ash heard a familiar voice call out to him as he finished his turn and noticed the hallway to the left that had some stairs that would end up leading to the battlefield. Ash could hear the sound of the cheering going on, but he then noticed that Calem was right in front of him as well. "Ash, are you up next?"

"I totally am!" Ash said with a pumped fist and then motioned to Pikachu who was also grinning. "And I will win go make sure we make it to our promised battle!"

"Hehehe," Calem chuckled as he looked down and then put both of his hands on his pockets. "I am looking forward to hopefully having a battle with you Ash, but remember you have to win here first."

"Right," Ash replied with a smile until he narrowed his eyes, "And watch closely, because there is a pokemon that I am planning to use, and he is the one that wants to have a rematch with you."

"Frogadier?" Calem asked knowingly. Ash just smiled even more at this and Calem seemed to see a little bit of fire in Ash's eyes that made him back off a little. "Anyways, I have to go on ahead and go back with the others. You better win this match, because when after this battle, they will call us all down to get the prize money… And you better be the one that stands there with me."

"You bet!" Ash exclaimed while holding out a clenched fist in front of him. Calem then nodded and went around Ash with a smile on his face. Ash turned around and watched him leave until he made the turn and disappeared. Ash's ears then picked up on the faint sound of cheering coming from the stairs. Ash looked at Pikachu, who had a determined look on his face, and then ascended the stairs with a great amount of confidence. When Ash reached the top step, he saw the light at the other end of the tunnel…

A light he went towards without hesitation…

 **With Hau:**

Hau looked at the light in front of him and heard as the cheers increased in volume. Hau then stopped right as the light was about to come into contact with his body. Hau then took a deep breath. He felt as the oxygen filled his lungs and with a light blow, Hau felt his lungs relax. Hau then pumped his feet on the solid floor and then said: "It's time… To win this battle and save Lillie."

And with that, Hau stepped into the light.

 **A/N: Alright everyone, let's take a deep breath…**

 **This is a very decisive battle that could go either way, but what Ash does not know is that the life of a person lies in the result of the battle. Ash may be doing this off of passion, but Hau is doing this for a necessity.**

 **Again, this may be an emotional battle for many, but I will keep things as good as I have tried to keep them for some time.**

 **Without further ado… I am going to begin writing this chapter…**

 **3…**

 **2…**

 **1…**

 **Here we go:**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or "Runnin" by Adam Lambert**

Chapter 37- Ash vs Hau! A life on the line!

 **With Ash:**

Ash felt himself walking on top of the white trainers platform to then be exposed to the large fresh air of the open stadium. Ash could make out the six corners of the stadium that contained the large amounts of stands and the hexagonal yellow lights keeping the stadium lit despite it being barely around noon. Ash looked at the sky and saw the sun beaming right through the middle of the stadium. His attention then went to the top right in which he saw the scoreboard that he had seen before:

 **Ash:** (pokeball) (pokeball) **(pokeball)**

 **Hau:** (pokeball) (pokeball) **(pokeball)**

Ash smirked as he then focused his gaze through the cheering crowd to see Hau in front of him with a very serious expression.

"To a good battle," Ash said with a pumping of his fists. Ash noticed that Hau flinched a little in surprise at this gesture. Ash figured that Hau had probably never battled someone that had such a cold heart, but then again, something about this boy was confusing to Ash… Something just did not feel… Right.

Ash saw as Hau just nodded slowly as if telling Ash that he also meant to say the same thing.

" _And so in which battlefield will our two trainers be battling in?"_

Ash looked down from his platform to see the large gap that separated him and Hau come with a battlefield. Ash flinched as he saw this. He was not expecting such an odd looking field, much less a battlefield in the middle of Kalos that did not even look like it belonged anywhere. As the crowd cheered, Ash looked at the battlefield and noticed that it was a large sandy area with a couple of palm trees and the area in the middle was a pool of water.

" _And the battle will be held in a beach field! This is going to be an interesting one folks!"_

The crowd roared at this as Ash saw from the other end of the arena Hau, not smiling… Smirking. "My home region is Alola, this is just as good as giving me home advantage," Hau taunted.

Ash smirked back at this as the two then saw the referee join the two trainers on the battlefield. The ref then put his hand out towards the two trainers and shouted, "This will be a 3 on 3 pokemon battle. Substitutions are allowed and the battle will be over when all 3 pokemon on one side are unable to continue." The referee then put his hand into the air, "Choose your first pokemon!"

Ash did not hesitate, nor did he plan on wasting any time, "Pikachu! I choose you!" Ash shouted this while pointing at the battlefield. At this Pikachu jumped into the sand with a smile on his face.

"Pika! Pikachu pika!" Pikachu cried as he gathered electricity on his cheeks.

" _And Ash decided to go with his powerful Pikachu! Amazing!"_

Hau reached into his belt and then expanded a pokeball as he then threw the pokeball into the air while shouting, "Go, Raichu!"

The pokeball opened in mid air to show a slightly more curvy looking Raichu that had his tail under his feet and was floating in mid air. "Rai Rai!" Raichu cried with excitement as he flew around the arena with his tail.

" _What a mysterious looking Raichu! I have never seen one like it in person before!"_

"That is a Raichu?" Ash asked himself. "Doesn't look like one…" Ash then pulled out his Pokedex and scanned the floating electric rodent, but just flinched a little as he noticed that the Pokedex could not give him any information on what was in front of him. "This… This does not look good…"

 **At the stands:**

"Clemont, do you know what pokemon that is?" Serena asked Clemont who was nearest to her. Clemont put a finger on his chin as he shook his head. Serena then knew that there was no way of knowing, so she sighed and hoped that Ash would do the best he could and would come out on top despite the amount of people she was hearing showing awe towards the mysterious looking Raichu.

Serena then looked up to see the scoreboard with Pikachu on one side and the Raichu on the other next to the respective names of the trainers.

Brock then said something that got everyone's attention, "Alolan forms…"

"What?" Tierno and Trevor asked in unison at hearing the tanned man's words.

Brock just looked down at the sandy field and said, "I was talking with Professor Oak in Kanto not too long ago and he mentioned his cousin who lives in Alola saying that some Kanto pokemon get alternative forms there." Brock then narrowed his eyes, "I think Incineroar is a fire starter from Alola too, which means this trainer is definitely not from around here… and even worse is how he mentioned the battlefield being in his advantage."

At this Serena nodded in understanding, but with large amounts of stress, "Be careful Ash."

 **At the battle:**

The referee then put his left arm into the sky, "Let the battle…

BEGIN!"

 **Battle Music Begin! Ash (Pikachu) vs Hau (Raichu Alola Form):**

"Pikachu, use thunderbolt!" Ash shouted with his hand out as soon as the battle begun. He was not wasting any time, he was wanting to get Hau to attack and see what his strategy was. Ash knew that Hau was going to be trying to disorient his battling style, and Ash could not afford that. Ash narrowed his eyes as he watched Pikachu leap into the air while enveloping himself in an aura of electricity.

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu cried with his trademark thunderbolt that shot towards the ground and carved a Z shaped crackling volt across the ground before becoming of great approximation towards the Alolan Raichu.

"Raichu, use your thunderbolt to counter it!" Hau retaliated with a fist out. His Raichu gave out a similar cry to Pikachu's and with that began to make a crackling beam of electricity that headed straight for the thunderbolt that was headed in the direction of the evolved form. The two beams collided with great power and then dissipated a small explosion that made a cloud of smoke above the sand.

" _Wow! A stalemate in thunderbolt! This is very exciting!"_

"Hmmmm…" Ash whispered to himself through the cheering rows of stands around him. "There has to be something I can try." Ash then noticed Pikachu land in front of him on all fours, digging into the sand. Ash then saw as the smoke cleared and then noticed a shiny reflection from the sun come from the sand. "Glass?" Ash asked himself quietly while narrowing his eyes. 'This has to be an opening, but maybe I can use it to my advantage in another way… That's it!'

"Use thunderbolt again!" Ash heard from the other side of the tropical arena. Raichu kept himself on his tail before shooting the crackling electricity towards the electric rodent.

Ash looked at Pikachu and the two exchanged a small glance, "Pikachu, dodge it!"

"Pika!" Jumps to the left and avoids the first bolt.

"Rai!" The thunderbolt is redirected towards Pikachu.

"Kachu!" Pikachu dodges to the right to be near Ash again, but this time the bolt that Raichu shot came too close and struck Pikachu right on. "Pikaaaa!" Pikachu muttered as he flew across the air to Ash's surprise with smoke behind his tail.

"Pikachu no!" Ash called out as he noticed his small rodent begin to get back up slightly. "Pikachu, all you alright?"

"Pika… PIKACHU!" Pikachu shouted with a determined face as he stood back up on all fours. Ash looked and noticed some more glass on the sand, but decided that he might need some more for later.

"Raichu use focus blast!" Hau commanded with a pumped fist.

"Rai… CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" The surfing mouse cried as he made a orange ball of energy form in between his hands with a great amount of power radiating from it. Raichu then shot the orange sphere of energy towards the recovering electric mouse and Pikachu stared in complete awe as the orange ball got nearer. The attack surprised Ash as well as he did not make a move in time and thus the focus blast slammed into Pikachu with an explosion kicking up the sand.

"Pikachu!"

"Pikaaaa!" Pikachu cried while being enveloped in another explosion that his time hit harder. Pikachu fell in front of Ash with some difficulty and slowly made it to be on his four legs again before looking back at Ash and saying, "Pika pika Pikachu!"

" _What a bad hit! I am surprised that Pikachu is still standing!"_

"Right! We will keep on battling!" Ash replied to his electric mouse. At this the crowd cheered as Ash raised his arm, "Pikachu, run with quick attack!"

"Thunderbolt! Stop him!" Hau responded with a serious face. Pikachu made a while gleam around him as he began to run across the sand, but the Alolan pokemon charged up the electricity in his cheeks before sending them in the direction of Pikachu. Pikachu then narrowed his eyes as he sees the incoming attacks and noticed he can get out of the way. Pikachu shifts to the right as a thunderbolt struck his previous position and the Pikachu shifted back to avoid another thunderbolt. Pikachu then got through the attacks and leaped into the air with the sky gleaming down on his body to be headed right for the Raichu. Hau noticed this and gritted his teeth as he put his hand out. "Not gonna let this happen! Use psyshock!"

"Raiii! CHUUUUUU!" Raichu screeched as he makes his hands go out and expel a pink beam of energy which made Ash go wide eyed as he watched Pikachu get struck right in the head and pushed back to be in front of him.

"Pikachu no!" Ash shouted with worry as he watched his electric type land in front of him completely dazed and barely able to get up.

"Use toxic!"

Ash watched in terror as Raichu shot purple orbs of poison that interacted with Pikachu before the smaller electric rodent got completely enveloped in purple bubbles that Ash knew would be trouble for the future of the battle. "Pikachu, come on, I know you can push through!" Ash exclaimed with worry at his partner.

" _Uh oh, it appears Pikachu has been poisoned, this does not look good for Ash at all!"_

 **At the stands:**

"This does not look good for Pikachu," Brock said with crossed arms. "He has been poisoned and has taken massive damage." Brock then leaned back in his seat and sighed in frustration.

"Poison may be something extremely powerful, but if Ash can just stall it out for a bit, then maybe he can do something with Pikachu before the poison runs its full course," Trevor implied while looking down at the battlefield with worry. He knew that ever since his loss to Ash, there was no way that Ash could lost Pikachu that easily, Trevor knew well the electric rodent could handle more than anything he has ever seen before.

Bonnie stood up from her seat with worry alongside Serena and Shauna who had extremely shocked faces as they watched Pikachu get struck once more with thunderbolt causing a large cloud of sand in the middle of the field.

" _And Pikachu is struck again, this is very much the end of Pikachu!"_

"What will Ash do, will he lose?' Bonnie asked with an unsure expression on her face with great worry in her voice.

Serena held her ribbon and said, "Ash will win this battle, I know he will!" Serena then looked at the panicked Ash who was gritting his teeth. "Ash, you better pull through with all of your power," Serena whispered to herself.

 **At the battle:**

"Pikachu get up, we will win this together!" Ash ordered. Pikachu slowly got up as purple electric zaps and a small amount of purple bubbles came out of his head. Pikachu shook his head and then tightened his muscles before recharging his cheeks with a great amount of electricity that Ash saw as a great indication of determination. "YES! Alright, Pikachu quick attack!"

" _What a persistent little guy! He will keep battling no matter what!"_

"Pika!" Pikachu reeled his head up before narrowing his eyes at the floating Raichu and beginning to rush at full speed towards the flying electric and psychic type while having a white blur on his running. "Pika pika pika pika…"

"Trying the same thing?" Hau taunted with a smirk. "Raichu use focus blast!"

"Raiiii…." Raichu cried as he charged up the orange ball in between his arms. Ash smirked as he saw this, he knew he now had an opening. "CHUUUUUU!" Raichu exclaimed as he launched the ball of energy at the running electric rodent with great amounts of determination despite the purple bubbles coming from his head.

"Pikachu, iron tail!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he jumped into the air while making his tail glow white and stiffen. Pikachu then swung his tail around and aimed for the orange ball of energy. Hau watched in awe as Pikachu down cut the focus blast causing it to fall to the ground in front of Ash with an sandy explosion underneath while Pikachu was propelled into the air and with great amount of power, Ash saw his opening.

"Pikachu, use thunderbolt and iron tail together to make electric rings, and aim then at any part of the battlefield that are shining!" Ash commands precisely with great amounts of confidence. Pikachu cried his usual thunderbolt cry, but aimed his tail down at the field and made his electricity grow until he saw the shining glass on the sand and then let go on his electricity in miniature rings that headed towards the shining spots.

"What?" Hau asked himself as he questioned what Ash was doing. Hau then flinched in surprise as he noticed how the electric rings collided with the ground with force and then caused a large blinding light that made Hau turn away and cover his eyes while the Kanto native looked at the air to see Pikachu beginning his descent with great speed.

"Now, take advantage that Raichu can't see and use iron tail!" Ash commanded while putting his fist out.

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he made his tail glow white once more and then downcut on the head of the floating Raichu that was now closer to the ground because of the inability to see. Raichu landed in front of a shocked Hau with a small explosion. Raichu tried to get up, but as soon as he raised himself to his two legs, Raichu fell back down to his knees, and this gave Ash a time to finish.

Ash pointed forward and gave his finishing attack: "Use thunderbolt!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu cried with intensity as he charged up electricity on his cheeks and then firing the crackling bolt straight at the hardly standing Raichu. The explosion gathered some sand to go around the electric and psychic type. "Pika…" Pikachu grunted as he fell in front of Ash and took poison damage, but when the sand cleared, Raichu was on the ground unconscious.

"Raichu is unable to battle, which means that Pikachu wins!" The referee declared.

" _What an amazing combination of moves! This means that Ash has somehow managed to find the lead in a battle that was never going on his favor in the first place!"_

"Alright Pikachu!" Ash exclaimed with excitement as his electric rodent smiled back at him while ignoring the purple bubbles that surrounded him. At the same time, Hau retreated his fallen pokemon as the scoreboard deemed the Alolan Raichu as out of the battle.

 **Stands:**

"That thunderbolt iron tail combination," Serena muttered as she smiled. "Maybe, it would work in showcases and maybe Kapi could try it."

"You know Serena," Bonnie said with a slight nudge with her elbow. "You should allow Kapi to watch some battles."

"Maybe, but maybe not right now, I have to cheer on Ash!" Serena declared as she stood up and joined the cheering crowd that was yelling Pikachu's name in unison.

"I still can't believe he pulled it off," Tierno replied with a smile as he crossed his arms. "So many people will need to watch out for that."

 **At the battle:**

Ash saw as Hau reached into his belt and grabbed another pokeball. Ash could sense that whatever it was, it would be a strong pokemon because Hau was not having any second thoughts about what he was choosing. "Let's get this over with Kommo-o!"

Hau threw the pokeball and Ash watched as it curved in the air and began to descend back into the sand. The pokeball then burst open with a flashing light and Ash gasped as he saw what came out. Standing in front of him was a large bipedal dragon pokemon with green and red scales that ran all over his body. Ash flinched as he saw the battlecry that the pokemon made as the dragon type made a large cry that caused Ash's scarf to wave. The crowd did seem to be impressed as they also grew louder as they cheered on the battle.

" _And Hau's second choice will be a Kommo-o! I have never seen a pokemon like that before!"_

"Gruaaaww!" Kommo-o cried as Ash noticed that the large pokemon had his arms out in a style that looked like it could be a fighting type.

"A fighting and dragon type?" Ash muttered to himself as he looked at the sand to see his electric rodent in a tough spot with the poison. "Pikachu? You want to keep going?" Ash asked with determination as he watched Pikachu turn around and give out a strong thumbs up before turning his attention at the large pokemon in front of him. "Alright then, Pikachu, use quick attack, but run towards the water at the sides of the sand!"

"Pika!" Pikachu cried as he glowed a white outline and ran towards the left side of Ash's field to then jump into the water and begin to get himself wet.

"That won't work," Hau stated with a serious face. "Kommo-o use flash cannon into the water!" Kommo-o did not hesitate as he charged up a metallic white beam and aimed it at the water. The beam then fired and collided with the water while making the water splash in great distance. Ash watched as the flash cannon headed in the direction of Pikachu, but then Ash made the call that allowed him to get an opening.

" _So Pikachu is hiding in the water as Hau commanded a powerful flash cannon! Will it be possible for the Kommo-o to land the hit?"_

"Propel yourself into the air with iron tail!" Ash shouted while putting his arm out. Pikachu made his iron tail and then slammed the iron hard lightning shaped tail into the ground to cause a spring like maneuver that allowed the electric rodent to be suspended in mid air. Ash then noticed how Kommo-o was soaked in water due to using flash canon in the water, so with that he made his next call. "Thunderbolt!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu shouted with all of his power as the electric bolt slammed into the wet Kommo-o. The Alolan pseudo legendary pokemon took the attack with a grunt before going to his knees. Pikachu then stopped his attack and began to fall in the direction of Kommo-o and Hau saw his opening.

" _And the water does its effect on the battle! Amazing work from Ash!"_

"Use sky uppercut!"

"GRRRRAAAAWWW!"

"Pikaaaaaa!" Pikachu grunter as he got hit in the abdomen with a large fist of the dragon type. Pikachu got hit hard and flew across the sky with no control. Ash watched this with great panic as Hau made his last call.

"Flash cannon again!" Kommo-o instantly made the steel colored beam to then slam it into the electric rodent at such a blinding speed that Ash was left agape. Ash looked up to hear an explosion and gritted his teeth as he saw the cloud of smoke reveal Pikachu fall down from the air and slam into the sand below.

"Pikachu! Are you OK?" Ash asked in worry as he witnessed Pikachu slowly get up. Pikachu then made one last grunt before purple sparks came in and made Pikachu fall to the sand head first. "Pikachu no!"

"Pikachu is unable to battle, which means that Kommo-o wins!" The referee declared as Ash stepped into the battlefield.

" _And Pikachu has fallen! The poison has finally caught up with him and it made sure that it would be at a critical time, Ash has to somehow get through this beast!"_

Ash was careful trying not to get sand on his shoes, but he moved quickly as he grabbed the fallen electric rodent in his arms and begin to slowly carry him back to the trainer's platform. "Pikachu, you were awesome, take a good rest," Ash said as he noticed the purple bubbles gone meaning that the poison had disappeared after it gave Pikachu the last blow. Ash carefully set down his electric rodent on the side of the trainer's platform at a place where Pikachu would be safe and then walked back to the trainer's platform where he was earlier.

" _What pokemon will Ash use now?"_

Ash heard as the stands began to chant his name and he smirked as he gripped a pokeball and put it in front of himself to show Hau, "Goodra!" Ash shouted as he then threw the ball into the air. "I choose you!"

"Gooooooooooo!" Goodra cried as he stood on his side of the field with a defensive pose. "Goodra!" Goodra shouted while dripping goo from his arms.

"Alright Goodra, are you ready?" Ash asked with determination and a pumped fist.

"Goodra!" Goodra replied back with a nod and a smirk.

" _And Ash's fifth registered pokemon is a Goodra! Amazing!"_

"So, a battle of pseudo legendary pokemon?" Ash heard as Hau asked with a slightly amused tone. Ash nodded as Hau then put his arm out while calling out the first move. "Use clanging scale!" Kommo-o put his arms out and from there came a barrage of five sharp scaly like projectiles that all shot out in the direction of Goodra.

Knowing that Goodra is not a fast pokemon meant that Ash knew he had to attempt to counter it, "You thought you were done with my electricity? Thunder!" Goodra made his body glow an electric aura and then he expelled the crackling beam at the scales that were shooting past the sky towards him. The beam of electricity then interacted with the scales and both attacks collides in a stalemate in the middle of the tropical field.

"Urgh!" Hau grunted as he saw this, but then he pumped his fist, "Kommo-o use sky uppercut!" Kommo-o made a battlecry before making his fist glow and then running at a speed that Ash had not expected from the pokemon, but he definitely was ready.

"Trap it with your ears!"

"Goo!" Goodra stretched out his ears before the scaled dragon reached the gooey pokemon and as soon as the upper cut was about to come, Goodra made the ears snap in and wrap themselves around the fist. Ash was shown smirking as Hau was shown with gritted teeth.

"Use thunder!" Ash shouted while putting his arm into the air. Goodra charged up his electricity and expelled it through his ears and straight onto Kommo-o. The later winced in pain throughout the entire experience which frustrated Hau, but Ash decided to try something else. "Now throw Kommo-o into the air!" Goodra swung his ears around with great strength and the scaled dragon then fell on his back in front of his trainer.

" _Amazing! I have never seen a Goodra use such an amazing strategy with his long ears! This battle is at a whole new level!"_

"Kommo-o, are you alright?" Hau asked with worry.

"Graw!" Kommo-o responded with an amused face as the green and red dragon turned back towards the sandy battlefield and faced his purple opponent.

"Alright then! Use flash cannon!"

"Use bide Goodra!" Ash retaliated while pumping his fist with one hand and throwing his arm out to the side with a clean swipe.

"Goo!" Goodra nodded as he watched the Kommo-o charge up the steel type move and then fire the strong silver blast right at him. Goodra then braced himself as he felt the beam collide with him. Goodra then began to glow a red aura around him causing a large amount of resistance to build up in his veins. Hau was smirking as he saw this, but Ash was gritting his teeth obviously knowing that this was a huge risk for him.

 **Stands:**

Serena held onto her ribbon as she watched the battle unfold in front of her. She was extremely worried for Goodra and she noticed that Hau issued a command that even made it so that Kommo-o's flash cannon would grow to be twice the size. As she closely looked at Goodra, she noticed the red aura around the pseudo legendary slowly growing… She knew what was coming.

"Ash has to hold on if he wants to go through," Tierno said. "There is no way Ash won't win if he does not attack."

"Yes, and there is even no way that Kommo-o will take less hits, the pokemon was able to make itself resist even thunderbolts from Pikachu and a straight on thunder from Goodra," Shauna remarked with a worried face.

"Ash has something up his sleeve," Brock suddenly said as everyone turned to him. "There is no way that Ash would just let himself being attacked just like that, I see something happening."

"Now, Ash might have an advantage with Goodra's rain dance, but we will have to see what will happen," Clemont remarked while adjusting his glasses.

"Go Ash!" Bonnie cried while standing up from her seat. "Go Goodra!"

"Nenne!"

 **At the battle:**

Hau let the flash cannon stop with a large satisfied look on his face until he noticed that Ash was smirking and Goodra was holding in all of his power with his hands, "Let it RIP!" Ash exclaimed with huge amounts of happiness while putting his fist out.

"GOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Goodra started as he charged a ball of energy in front of his mouth that was white. "DRRRRRRRRAAAAAA!" Goodra shrieked in the end while aiming his energy at Kommo-o and letting out a large beam in the direction of the dragon fighting. Kommo-o watched in horror as the attack was about to hit with him and his eyes gleamed with awe as well until he was enveloped in a large explosion that left the sand to kick up on Hau's side of the field.

" _And Goodra uses Kommo-o's own power to his advantage! What a risk that was Ash took to deliver so much damage!"_

"Kommo-o! Are you alright?" Hau asked with panic as he watched the kicked up sand disappear.

"Gruaw!" Kommo-o weakly said with a dazed expression as he stood up and pumped his fist at Hau.

"Alright!" Hau stated while narrowing his eyes. Hau then put his hand out as he made his next command, "Use clanging scales!" Kommo-o got to work as he made the miniature sharp scales and then expelled them as projectiles in the direction of Goodra. Ash watched in horror as he had been surprised that Kommo-o had taken a bide from Goodra despite the damage the fighting type had taken earlier. Suddenly, Ash saw an explosion as his purple dragon got hit with the scales.

" _And Kommo-o strikes back with an amazing use of clanging scales that have landed a super effective hit on Goodra!"_

"Goodra," Ash shouted to his pokemon that was hanging his head in exhaustion. "Goodra, pull yourself together and use rain dance!" Goodra then looked at the sky and began to summon a large amounts of clouds that covered the stadium with the darkness that comes from blocking the bright sunny sky with the clouds. Slowly, Ash began to felt as the rain began to pour around him and begin to get his clothes wet, but he did not care. He also began to hear splashing sounds over the cheering crowd and it was obviously the shorelines at the sides of the stadium that caused the splashing sound of the rain hitting the water. Goodra then looked at Ash and smirked as Goodra knew what came next.

"Kommo-o use sky uppercut!"

"Not gonna happen!" Ash declared with a smirk as he put his arms out. "Use thunder!" Ash watched as Goodra began to crackle in electricity and begin to aim at the charging Kommo-o. Suddenly, Goodra shot his crackling beam and it landed right on top of the fighting and dragon type as suddenly, Kommo-o stopped in his tracks with a large feeling of being completely dazed. Ash saw this and put his hands out as the opportunity:

"DRACO METEOR!"

"No way!" Hau grunted with frustration as he noticed Goodra begin to charge up the orange celestial orb around his mouth.

"GoooooooooooDDDDDDRRRAAAAAAAA!" Goodra sang as he propelled the large sphere into the air. Goodra then watched in awe as the orb of orange energy passed the rain clouds and went right through causing a slight amount of silence with the crowd. Ash and Hau then saw as from beyond the rain clouds there was a flash of light that made the rain clouds glow a bright lightish color for a second, but then disappeared.

" _Where has the orb gone? It seems to have disappeared!"_

" **Pew pew pew!"** Through the clouds came a large amounts of meteors that began to fall all throughout the arena causing the sand to kick up while also causing the water to splash up into the air more than when the rain hits the water. The crashing meteors then slammed into Kommo-o causing an explosion that left Hau with his mouth agape. The crowd instantly cheered at this as the sand cleared and in the falling rain, Kommo-o was not moving on the ground.

"Kommo-o is unable to battle!" The ref declared while raising his hand. "Goodra wins!"

" _Amazing! Ash used the rain dance to conceal the draco meteor and thus made it impossible for Hau to dodge the attack in any way! This means that Ash now has a great advantage and Hau is down to his last pokemon!"_

"YES Goodra!" Ash shouted while putting a fist into the air.

"Goo goo goodra!" Goodra cried in celebration while looking at his trainer and smiling.

Ash watched as Hau sighed and recalled his Kommo-o back into his pokeball. Ash then took a glimpse of the scoreboard and noticed that he was in a very good spot:

 **Ash:** _Pikachu_ (pokeball) **Goodra**

 **Hau:** _Raichu Kommo-o_ **(pokeball)**

Hau then reached into his belt and pulled out a pokeball with a deep breath as he looked at the pokeball and visibly squeezed the pokeball in his hand as in he was putting his entire life in this pokemon. Hau then looked up at Ash with fire in his eyes and threw the pokeball into the air, "GO INCINEROAR!"

" _There it is! The incredible Incineroar that we saw sweeping for all of this time! Will Hau pull this off, or will Ash end up defeating the still undefeated feline!?"_

Ash watched in awe as the pokeball travelled through the rain and then opened to reveal a flashing light that materialized into the fire and dark feline like pokemon that appeared in front of him. "ROOOOAAAARRR!" Incineroar roared with a strong cry that made the stands shout in approval. Ash noticed how Incineroar then made himself appear bigger by putting his claws out in front of him. It truly was a menacing sight.

 **At the stands:**

"There it is," Shauna said with an unsure tone. Calem nodded at Shauna as he watched as Incineroar launched a flamethrower at Goodra. Calem winced as he saw Goodra take the hit head on, but he then noticed that the rain above Goodra and Incineroar was weakening the power of flamethrower. Still, Calem could not help but feel worried for Ash as he recalled how he wanted to have a propper battle with the raven haired trainer.

"Come on Ash," Calem muttered as the audience gasped at how Goodra swung Incineroar into the air and then launched a thunder that left the fire and dark type slightly dazed. "Win this right here with Goodra!"

"Go Ash!" Bonnie literally jumped out of her seat to shout this. The cheering of the crowd did not really allow the message to get through, but Bonnie believed that Ash knew that they were all cheering for him.

Tierno and Trevor stared with uncertainty at the tropical field as they saw Goodra get slammed on by a darkest lariat. Trevor looked away as he saw how Goodra fell in front of a really stressed out Ash and Tierno crossed his arms with great amounts of worry for his friend. "Come on Goodra!" Brock attempted to yell at the field. Still, it worried him that Goodra was in such a critical condition to battle.

"Ash is in big trouble at this point," Clemont said as he adjusted his glasses to look at the field in which it was raining. "That fire type is really something else."

Serena just stared down at the field with a hand over her ribbon with great hope for Goodra. She knew that Ash still had one pokemon left, but it was evident that Incineroar would not back down at all, it looked like a fire type that would never back down from a battle and would never take a loss.

" _And Goodra gets slammed on again with a powerful darkest lariat! What can Ash even do now?"_

At the other side of the hexagonal stadium, looking down from the stands a cloaked man looked at the field with a serious face. Inside of his cloak, a small Pikachu was staring from the shoulder of the man. "Pika," the Pikachu gasped as he witnessed a draco meteor go into the sky and hide above the rain.

"Yes, I know," The man said quietly as he saw the meteors fall towards the ground and cause some damage to the fire type, but other than that Incineroar stood back up with some damage that evidently was not causing the large clawed pokemon to back down.

 **At the battle:**

"Incineroar use darkest lariat one more time!" Hau commanded with a fist out and pointed towards the battlefield.

Ash gritted his teeth as he saw how Goodra was starting to look very fatigued from battling, "Goodra, we have to try this! Use bide!" Goodra slowly nodded as he prepared to brace himself, but Ash begin to give orders as the fire type came running with black glowing claws. "Use your tail and swing him away as soon as he makes contact!"

"GOOOOO!" Goodra shouted with great power as he charged up his action and then swung his tail with great amounts of angular momentum around as soon as the attack came. Goodra winced a little, but managed to stall out the attack and make Incineroar fall to be in front of his trainer. Goodra then had a red aura surround him and Ash knew that it was finally time to use his great power.

"Goodra let it go!" Ash ordered with a hand out. Goodra charged up his attack and then launched it right at the fire dragon with great power. Ash watched as Hau flinched at this causing the raven haired trainer to smirk, but Hau then changed the atmosphere of the battle.

"Flamethrower!"

" _And after a bide, Hau is going to counter with flamethrower! How will this go down?"_

"ROOOOOOOOOOAAAARRR!" Incineroar shouted with great power as he then expelled a jet of flames from his mouth. The two beams of energy then closed the gap and collided with great power that caused a large explosion in the middle of the field. From that explosion, both Goodra and Incineroar fell back with some damage taken, but the pseudo legendary dragon was having great difficulty getting up, and Hau wanted to take advantage of this:

"Incineroar finish this with darkest lariat!" Hau commanded while putting his hand out. Incineroar did not waste time as he made his claws extend and begin to glow black. Ash went wide eyed as he watched Incineroar begin to quickly close the gap with Goodra. Goodra also went wide eyed as he saw the attack come closer and closer until Goodra was hit right on the side of the torso with three claw marks that shadowed the swing of the dark type move. Suddenly the air around Goodra got consumed in sand and when the sand cleared seconds later, Goodra was on the ground unconscious.

"Goodra is unable to battle, which means Incineroar wins!" The ref declared as Ash sighed and recalled Goodra back into its red energy state in the pokeball.

" _What a finish! That Incineroar looks in the mood to bring back the battle, this is getting exciting!"_

"Thanks for battling Goodra, you were amazing," Ash said as he put his pokeball back into his belt. Ash then felt the rain lighten and when he looked up, it was evident that the rain was clearing and within seconds the rain was over. Ash then looked to his left to see that Pikachu was feeling a little better. Ash went over to Pikachu and put a hand over his head at which Pikachu slowly woke up. "Hey, Pikachu, are you feeling any better?"

"Pika," Pikachu smiled as he got on Ash's shoulder and gave a fist pump to let his trainer know that he could be with his trainer. "Pika pikachu!"

"Yes, I know," Ash told his electric friend as he walked back to his trainer platform. "We are going to show Hau just how powerful we can be!" Pikachu smiled at this and when Ash reached the trainer platform, Pikachu got down from the scarfed raven haired teenager's shoulder. Ash then reached into his belt and picked out a pokeball and put it in his hand. Ash then looked right and up to see the scoreboard. It displayed that Hau and him were both down to their last pokemon and Ash smiled as he knew he would have a great time battling with this pokemon. Ash then put his hand with the pokeball out and then threw it out like a frisbee. "GRENINJA! I CHOOSE YOU!"

"Ninja!" Greninja said in his sinister voice while standing in the sand with his arms crossed across his chest.

" _And Ash's last pokemon will be a Greninja! What can this pokemon bring to the table?"_

 **At the stands:**

"Greninja," Calem said with wide eyes as he watched the sinister water and dark ninja standing in the sand with a great confident look. Calem then smirked, "I think that is what Ash meant by 'someone who wanted to battle me' the other day."

"Yea, but I am still a little worried," Brock said. "That is because _water types are totally weak against fire types_."

"Wait, I thought it was the other way around," Tierno said while looking at Brock with a quizzical look.

Brock then face palmed, "Of course, why did I even say something like that?" Tierno and Trevor both chuckled at that, but Shauna kept her focus in the battle.

"Serena, how powerful is that Greninja?" Shauna asked with a slightly worried voice. "That Incineroar has been able to take so many pokemon without losing, how will a Greninja even be enough?"

"Ash can defeat Incineroar when he is one with Greninja," Serena said with a serious voice. "I know that Greninja can reach heights that no other pokemon has ever reached before, so I am sure that Ash can win!"

Clemont then adjusted the glare on his glasses to then tell Shauna, "Serena is right, Greninja is very special. I am sure that Ash can win this if he pulls this off correctly."

"GO ASH! GO GRENINJA!" Bonnie screamed with excitement as she saw Greninja put his arms down with a serious look on his face. The cheering amount of people in the stands did not allow Bonnie to be heard, but Bonnie still held her great support for Ash.

 **At the battle:**

"Alright Ash," Hau said with a serious face. "Let's get this over with quickly so that I can rush back to Alola with the money."

Ash quirked an eyebrow at this, "Why do you need the money so much Hau?" Ash then noticed how Hau shook his head.

"You won't understand Ash, I just need to win this battle," Hau declared as he put his hand outside and then crushed his fingers into a fist, "Use darkest lariat!" Incineroar once more made his claws gain a black tint and then he began to rush Greninja.

Ash narrowed his eyes as he watched how Incineroar made his claws expand and aim right for Greninja. Ash then widened his eyes as Incineroar leaped into the air with the attempt of down cutting his tongue scarfed water type. "Double Team!"

"Gren! Gren! Gren!" Greninja grunted as he split off into copied of himself. At this, Incineroar began to slash the copies and sure enough, the copies began to disappear and Greninja was nowhere to be seen. Ash smirked at this as he then subconsciously told Greninja a command. Ash felt like if he could say the commands if he felt the presence of Greninja, and as soon as Incineroar hit the last copy, it did not look like Greninja was even around at all.

" _Where is Greninja? He seems to have disappeared!"_

"Where is he?" Hau muttered to himself before looking to his left and seeing the beach water at that side splash a little. "Flamethrower there!" Hau exclaimed as he pointed in the direction of where he saw the splash. Incineroar nodded and shot the jet of flames at the water for nothing to happen but a lot of steam to come out of the water and disappear. Hau noticed Ash smirking and could not understand what was going on with Greninja as he could not see the pokemon. Hau then narrowed his eyes as he saw a little bit of sand kick up near Ash and then see a little trail of sand head towards Incineroar. Hau then widened his eyes, "Darkest lariat QUICK!"

"ROAR!" Incineroar roared with intensity as he made the black claws and then swung in front of him fro his claws to get stuck in Greninja's dark blue kunai that was in the latter's hand. The two pokemon stood there in a stalemate, before they then backflipped to their trainers and grunter with their battle cries.

" _Amazing! And Greninja was prepared from the attack! Not only is Greninja being hard to track down, but Hau seems to be having the greatest challenge yet in this battle!"_

"Water shuriken!" Ash exclaimed as he put his hands out.

"Gren!" Greninja cried as he jumped into the air and then reaching his two webbed arms for the shuriken markings on his legs to get ninja star shaped water orbs on his hands. "NINJA!" Greninja shouted as he crossed his arms with the shurikens and then uncrossed his arms to throw the water shurikens at the fire and dark type pokemon.

"Darkest lariat!" Hau shouted with some panic on his voice.

"Roar!" Hits both shurikens and makes them disappear behind him and make an explosion in front of Hau. This caused there to be a little bit of dust and sand to be picked up.

"Use aerial ace!"

"NINJA!" Hits the bottom of the jaw line.

"Roar…" Incineroar's head goes up.

"JA!" slams his foot into the top of Incineroar's head.

"Roar…" Incineroar falls back.

"Gren… NINJA!" Greninja slams his right foot into the abdomen of the wrestler pokemon.

"Roar…" Incineroar falls back towards his trainer, but as he does that Incineroar then opens his eyes, resisting the pain and then falling back on the sand on both feet and using one of his arms to scrape the ground as well to help stop him.

" _What fierce blows from Greninja! This is bound to be Incineroar's match!"_

"Earthquake!" Hau commands with his arms out. Incineroar makes his arms slam into the ground and then the arena slowly begins to shake making the sand start to kick up everywhere. Greninja winces a little bit as the ground causes him to fall to the ground and be in the middle of a small sandstorm. "Now use flamethrower!"

"Use aqua blade!" Ash commanded while subconsciously telling Greninja where to aim. Greninja made two dark blue kunais and then as the beam of flames comes in from a side, Greninja adjusts his position really fast and then slices the fire with his two blades. The crowd then began to cheer harder as Greninja jumped out of the kicked up sand to then slice at Incineroar.

"Dodge it quick!" Hau ordered, but it was too late, Greninja's speed made the two blades slam right into Incineroar and the fire and dark type ended up in front of Hau with a very dazed look on his face. "Incineroar, are you alright?" Hau asked in a now panicked tone. Incineroar gave a large roar for Hau, but Hau gritted his teeth, he knew he had to get through this somehow, or else Lillie would pay the ultimate price.

" _And Incineroar is hit hard! This is trouble for Hau, will Hau be able to pull through this?"_

 **Nightcore- Runnin'**

 **Hau POV:**

I feel as my fear begins to kick in, the fear I want to run away from.

 _Steel to my trembling lips, how did the night ever get like this. One shot and the whiskey goes down down down…_

My vision starts to get a little blurry as I begin to see that there is a chance that I can lose this battle…

 _Bottom of the bottle hits, waking up my mind as I throw a fit._

I hear the announcer say something, but I could not quite make out what was being said. All I heard was some things being said and I just focused myself into the battle… I can't lose… If I lose then…

My heart is beating against my chest, I feel it… Like if it was going to burst out of my chest.

 _My heart is beating faster! I know what I am after!_

My senses come back and I see clearly as I put my fist out in front of me, "Use dual chop!" I watch as Incineroar makes a battle cry and I notice as he makes his hands glow white and are going to go towards Greninja. I then see as Ash commands his Greninja to dodge, but I am prepared for that, "Jump up!"

"Roar!" I watch as Incineroar jumps after the jumping Greninja. I could see as Incineroar then downcut and slammed his fist into Greninja's head thus causing Greninja to fall to the ground in front of Ash. Greninja slowly stood up in front of an incredibly worried Ash, but I knew I had to keep going:

"Flamethrower!" _I have been standing here my whole life, everything I've seen twice, and now it's time I realized!_

The jet of flames collide with Greninja who crossed his arms in front of his face in order to protect himself, but that was not enough as I saw the frog begin to crash back and fall in front of Ash with smoke around him.

 _It's spinning back around now! On this road I'm crawling, save me 'cus I'm falling oh I can barely breathe right!_

"Darkest lariat!" I command while crushing my hand in front of me. I watch as Incineroar makes his signature move and begins to charge Greninja with great power.

' _Cus I keep runnin' runnin' runnin' runnin'... RUNNIN' RUNNIN' RUNNIN' RUNNIN'_

 _RUNNIN' FROM MY HEART!_

 **Ash POV:**

I see as Incineroar is about to slam his dark claws into Greninja, "Aqua blade!" The two attacks collide and a large shockwave occurs in which I feel as the wind makes my scarf shake.

 _Round and around I would go addicted to the numb living in the cold. The higher, the lower, the down down down._

"Use water shuriken!" I command while putting my fist out. Greninja makes his water ninja stars and then checks them right at Incineroar with great power. I watch as just them the two attacks collide with the fire and dark type.

 _I'm sick of being tired and sick of waiting for another kind of fix… The damage is damning me down down down…_

 _My heart's beating faster, I know what I am after…_

I watch as Incineroar falls over in front of his trainer and then I close a fist right in front of me, "Water shuriken once more!"

"NINJA!" I see as the shurikens collide with Incineroar on the other side of the field with great power. I then see as the small explosion leaves Incineroar barely able to stand.

 _I've been standing here my whole life everything I've seen twice, and now it is time I realized, it's swigging back around now, on this road I am crawling, save me 'cus I am falling, oh I can barely breathe right._

I then see as Incineroar begins to slowly get up to an extremely dazed and tired to a Hau that is saying something… As in, telling Incineroar to fight for someone: "Incineroar, get up, do this for Lillie!"

Lillie? Wait… You are telling me that something is actually on the line here? If Hau loses then does that mean that…

 _But I keep runnin' runnin' runnin' runnin'_

My vision begins to blur as I then begin to notice my heart rate pick up. I can't lose, at least I don't want to… But what if it is best that I do?

 _RUNNIN' RUNNIN' RUNNIN' RUNNIN' RUNNIN'! From my HEART!_

"Incineroar! Let's finish this, SO WE CAN SAVE LILLIE!" I hear as I notice that Greninja is out in the open and Hau is beginning to make dancing movements... Kind of like how Serena did them during her match against Paula in the masterclass. I narrowed my eyes as I then saw Hau's bracelet begin to glisten and glow. Greninja to turns to me and he pumps his fist. I shake my head no, I can't do it, at least not right now. Greninja nods and turns back around to what I could see as open ears. I knew what I had to do if I was going to turn this battle back for us, but I needed to make sure I knew what was happening. I look over at Incineroar and see him get covered in an aura that came from the bracelet. "Z MOVE! MALICIOUS MOONSLAUGHT!"

" _What is going on? It seems that Incineroar is beginning to glow!"_

"ROOOAAARR!"

If Incineroar jumps into the air… I just watch as Incineroar jumped into the air above Greninja.

I sigh and look down….

But then I look up with a sad face towards Hau, "Hau…" Hau looks at me with a confused look, but as I see that Incineroar is arching himself over Greninja and me, I had to break it to Hau, " _I'm sorry…_ You fought a valiant battle, but this is all over…"

"What?" Hau asked in awe as I point into the air. Hau looked at the ground only to notice that Greninja was gone again. I then saw Hau get the strength to look up at the sky with tears beginning to form on his eyes. Greninja was above Incineroar, who was now looking down at the bare sand below him.

"USE AERIAL ACE!" I shout finally understanding Hau's pain, but I knew what had to be done. I watch as Greninja makes his legs glow white and then aim it down at Incineroar. Incineroar also turns around in mid air to see Greninja just in time to receive a kick to the abdomen and then get boosted right into the ground with the special aura around him.

"Incineroar NO PLEASE!" I hear Hau shout in desperation.

It was too painful to even think that I would do this….

But I did anyways:

"GRENINJA FINISH IT WITH WATER SHURIKEN!"

"Gren… NINJA!" I see Greninja make his shurikens and throw them right at Incineroar who was on the ground breathing hard. The next thing I saw was the two shurikens collide with the fire and dark type and cause an explosion in the middle of the field that caused all of the cheering to stop and become a lot of shocked faces. Greninja landed in front of me as the shock wave from the explosion left my scarf waving in the wind. When the mixture of sand and dust dissipated, I witnessed how Incineroar stood up in front of Greninja with a corrupt pose.

I witnessed as Hau looked relieved for a second and then took a deep breath and made his next move, "Darkest lariat!"

"Roar!" Incineroar shouted as he once again made his claws glow black and then begin to run at Greninja. I sighed at this as Greninja looked at me with a sad frown under his tongue. I nodded back and knew that it was over already. I narrowed my eyes as I saw Incineroar's running slow down to a walk and then to a stop in front of Greninja. Incineroar was about to slash Greninja when suddenly his black claws were replaced by a normal paw. "Roar…" Incineroar winced once more as he began to fall to his side while losing consciousness.

"PIKA PI!" Pikachu shouts in urgency as I saw how Incineroar was about to fall into the water, a potentially dangerous place for any pokemon to fall unconscious in.

I flinch at this as I then put my hand out, "Greninja quick! grab him!" I watch as Greninja then puts himself in the direction that Incineroar was falling to then drag the tiger from the direction of the water to then begin to slowly lower the tiger to the ground. I hear silence all over the stadium as the ref makes the call:

"Incineroar is unable to battle, which means the win goes to Ash from Lumiose City!"

" _And it is over! Ash wins the match! What an upset to such an amazing league run!"_

I hear the crowd roar with intensity as the scoreboard portrays my name as victorious, but I watch as a tear stricken Hau walks onto the sandy field and approaches Incineroar with a pokeball in his hand.

"Incineroar, we did all we could, just take a nice rest buddy," I heard Hau say as my heart shattered to pieces. I felt like I had just committed the worst decision of my life, and I don't know how I will be able to fix things. I watch as Greninja held Incineroar in his hands. Before Hau recalled his friend, I saw Incineroar whisper something to Greninja… But that ended with the red beam of the pokeball sucking Incineroar back into his small spheric home. Hau then looked at Greninja and forced a small smile before saying, "congratulations."

I walk onto the field just as I see Hau beginning to move away from Greninja. Pikachu was on my shoulder as I then stood next to Greninja and looked at Hau walk away through his dugout.

"Hau…"

 _That was all I could even say at that moment._

 **A/N: Ash won… In the end, Greninja was just too powerful that he completely bent Incineroar. The first and probably most crucial defeat that Hau could have met.**

 **I do want you guys to keep in mind of a couple things: Originally I was going to have Hau have Decidueye, but as I began to think of ways to put myself into the story, I began to think that maybe Decidueye would be a little better if he was with Night. Anyways, I also felt like I needed Hau to have something powerful as well, so I decided to go with the extremely powerful Incineroar. I hope you guys did enjoy my depiction of the fire type starter of Alola, specially since I wanted to show all three starters off in this fic: Serena has water, Night has grass, and Hau has fire.**

 **Furthermore, next chapter will hopefully be a little brighter in mood, I have something planned that may be huge character development for Ash in terms of many things, but mostly, I am making Ash grow up as a character to do things that Ash has never been able to do even in the anime.**

 **So yes, I may give you guys a little hint of what may happen next chapter… cough cough a better XYZ12 CAUGH CAUGH… ugh, this cough is killing me, anyways, I hope you guys enjoy the next chapter that will include the ceremony of passing onto the top 16 and as well as the surprise plot.**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **PS: Sorry for taking so long, I said I would update sooner, but school has gotten is the way of so much! Anyways, I am going to reply to reviews next time, so I apologize for not replying today, I am just so tired xD!**


	38. Chapter 38

**In the middle of the arena:**

" _AND HERE ARE OUR TOP 16 TRAINERS!"_

The announcer boomed through the hexagonal stadium as the entire crowd cheered at the sight of the sixteen trainers in the middle of the field. The stage was small, but it was big enough so that all sixteen trainers could stand with pride in the middle. It was actually the same battlefield mechanism that made it so that the stage could raise to be in between the dugouts. The stage consisted of a concrete floor in which the sixteen trainers aligned themselves. Ash found himself in between Tierno and Calem in one of the ends. Calem held the edge of the stage as Ash noticed that the other edge of the stage was occupied by the cloaked man.

Ash shifted his gaze among the trainers and noticed that Damian was five trainers to the right of Calem which made Ash flinch a little, but Ash did not really care much instead of the fact that he still felt the effects from the last battle with Hau. Ash was still trying to understand what was paining Hau so much that he had to win, it was like if Hau was trying to save someone at the same time by winning the prizes that came from winning the match.

"Ash, don't be so down, you won," Ash's thoughts were interrupted by Professor Sycamore who was in front of him. "Here you go Ash, congratulations." With this Ash was handed a check with 200 thousand Kaleuros. Professor Sycamore then moved from Ash to Calem and towards the other end of the stage. Ash shifted his gaze down on the check and thought about what this means. True, it was his problem some time ago, but now he knew that he could somehow even afford to have a roof over his head and maybe an endless supply of the most exquisite cuisine that can be offered.

"Pikapi?"

Ash looked down to see Pikachu looking at him with some worry in his eyes, Ash then forced a smile, "It is alright Pikachu, I am just a little conflicted about this."

"Pika…" Pikachu replied with a soft smile back at his trainer.

"Ash, what are you going to do with all of this money?" Ash heard from his left to see Tierno holding his check with a jumpy attitude. Ash chuckled at this as Tierno continued talking through the large amounts of cheering. "I am thinking of maybe buying myself a new step meter so I can check how healthy I am as I move and grove!"

"Hehe," Calem replied from Ash's right and then responded with: "I am sure that with you jumping around and dancing about, you could be able to stay healthy no matter what!"

"Guys alright, let me think," Ash said with a slight chuckle before turning his attention back to the check and then made a plan that would hopefully help him get what he needed to get done easily and quickly, but first he would need to find something out. "Alright guys, I know what I have to do, but first we should make sure that we enjoy our time here."

"Oh man Ash, what are you talking about?" Calem asked with a sarcastic smile before putting his arm over Ash's neck and smiling. "It is true, we are going to enjoy ourselves tonight!"

" _Now to announce the event to celebrate our best 16 trainers of the region!"_

"Celebration?" Ash asked as Pikachu got on his shoulder and the entire stadium quieted down. The announcer had caught everyone that was standing in the stage off guard except apparently Professor Sycamore, who had the brightest smile on his face. "I wonder what this is all about…"

" _The celebration consists of a festival East of the stadium on the streets. The twist is that only the trainers may come and they are only allowed to have one guest, so pick wisely who you will bring to the celebration! There will be music, dancing, games, and this is also the time where we will make the first match ups of the next round which will be a battle of 6 on 6!"_

At this the entire crowd began to cheer. Calem though, he seemed to already have a plan in his head, "I am going to bring Shauna along! YES!"

"Hey Calem?" Tierno asked with a shy expression. Calem turned to the big dancer and then the latter asked a question, "Can you get Shauna to get me a girl to go with?"

Calem quirked an eyebrow, "Are you sure that Shauna will even be able to get you a girl? What happened to Trevor?"

"Trevor… Well, he…" Tierno then trailed off a bit before sighing. "Just after Ash's match he went back to the hotel room, he said something about feeling sick to his head." Tierno then shrugged his shoulders. "He did look a little green after the battle so I guess what he ate was not sitting right."

"Alright Tierno," Calem said while looking down with a smile. Ash though, he was on his own world: Who would he bring to the festival?

" _The event starts at 8:00 tonight and you can go there in your casual clothes! So if you are one of our 16 trainers, be there!"_

It didn't really matter to the raven haired trainer as he watched the people in the stands begin to clear out of the stadium as Ash noticed the other trainers also begin to move out of the stage. Ash noticed as Calem and Tierno left next to each other to go find Shaun which left Ash and Pikachu alone in the stage except with a man with a lab coat. Ash decided to approach this person and have a talk with him.

"Professor Sycamore?" Ash asked as he approached the professor.

"Huh? Oh Ash," Professor Sycamore said with a bright smile in realization of the raven haired trainer. "How may I help you?"

The two humans and the electric rodent began to walk down the dugout and down the stairs that lead to the hexagonal shape corridor as Ash spoke up, "That last battle I had against Hau, do you know anything else from the trainer?"

"Huh?" Professor Sycamore asked in a little bit of a confusion before then turning back to Ash and saying, "Hau is a boy from Alola. I spoke to him when I first saw him here, in fact I offered him a pokemon to use for his journey, but apparently he was already an amazing trainer, he cleared the island challenge back at his home region and was just about to go face the elite four of Alola after defeating the Kahunas, as they are called."

Ash's eyes widened a little as he heard this, Hau was no ordinary trainer, in fact he was none other than near champion material in his own region which is amazing. Professor Sycamore then continued, "I heard him mention something about an incident that happened to his sister or something, but I do not really know much."

Ash then put his eyes down at the ground before he then looked at the check in his hands and folded it to put it in his pocket. Ash then looked back at the professor and said, "Is there a way in which I can get in contact with someone from Alola?"

Professor Sycamore put a hand to his chin, "Actually…" Professor Sycamore then took a piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to Ash. On the paper was the words: "Pokemon School" and on the bottom there was a number. Professor Sycamore then spoke back to Ash as the group arrived to the walkway outside of the stadium. "This is the number to an institution down in Alola, maybe you would find it helpful to ask them to help you with this."

Ash looked at the number as Pikachu also gasped his name out loud from Ash's shoulder. Ash then smiled at Professor Sycamore, "Thanks! I think this will do!"

"No problem," Professor Sycamore replied as Ash picked up the pace and began to run in the direction of the pokemon center north of where they were. Ash then reached the entrance and the doors of the pokemon center opened with great speed as Ash then looked around and saw what he was looking for:

The video phones.

 **A/N: Festival? Dance? One guest to bring? Who will Ash choose to bring to this event? I am extremely hyped up for what I have planned in this chapter. The beginning may be a little emotional as we still have yet to know what Ash is doing calling to Alola: All we know is that it has to do with Hau.**

 **Anyways, I know that the next round of the Kalos League is coming soon and that battle is going to be a two parter so keep that in mind… I mean, last battle I went above 10k words and now I will not have enough time to write in around 20k words per chapter, that is INSANE!**

 **Anyways, I know that was a little long of an introduction, but it was really the least important part of the entire chapter. The most important part has to be the festival…**

 _ **Where Ash begins to continue to grow as a character… This time in an unexpected way…**_

 **So yes, let's continue on with the story!**

 **PS: I don't know what is wrong with me, hopefully I can update more frequently now that I am in Summer Vacation xD! Sorry for the wait!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 38- A Malasada of friendship! A _zing_ between two individuals!

 **With Ash in the Pokemon Center:**

"Come on, pick up… pick up," Ash muttered to himself as he saw as the screen kept flashing different colors.

"Hello? Hau?" Ash heard a feminine voice calling out to him as Hau and Ash watched as the static then turned into a room with a nice tropical view to the outside where there was a large necked pokemon that looked like an Executor. Ash then shifted his gaze to the girl that was talking to him. She was a tanned girl with green long hair and dark green eyes. Ash then noticed that she had a light gray outfit on from the view he was getting and she also had her hands around her heart. The girl then flinched as she saw Ash and looked down sadly as she said the next words: "Hey, you are that guy that beat Hau aren't you?"

Ash and Pikachu both flinched a little as they heard this, but then slowly nodded their heads while saying, "Yea, I actually wanted to talk to someone that knows Hau… It appears I kind of knocked him out of the tournament at the worst time."

The girl sighed when she looked up at Ash and said, "Yea, my name is Mallow by the way."

Ash smiled at the girl named Mallow with a very reassuring smile, "Nice to meet you, my name is Ash Ketchum, and this is my partner Pikachu!"

"Pika pikachu!" Pikachu replied with a smile that mimicked his trainers. Mallow seemed to like this and smiled herself. Ash could still see the sadness in the smile though as he then spoke up:

"I kind of wanted to know a little more about what Hau likes to do, I kind of want to approach him and become friends with him." Mallow flinched as she saw what Ash said, "I notice him walking with his head down and with a large amount of sadness radiating through him… That also seems to be what cost him the battle with me." Ash then sighed, "Please Mallow, just tell me what Hau likes."

"Well," Mallow blushed a little at this since she considered herself to be the one that knows Hau the most. "Hau is very energetic and nice, he always, well used to, have a positive attitude and is a great battler. I kept up with him every step of the way in the Kalos League, but he lost when he battled you. I could not help feel great melancholy for him because of how much pain he has been lately… After the Incident…"

"Incident," As muttered to himself as he cut Mallow off. "Look Mallow, I see that you are also in emotional pain as you recall what is going on, so let me help you guys out, and Hau as well." Mallow cocked her head a little bit in surprise at this as Ash then spoke up with a little bit of a excitement, "Do you know something that Hau really likes?"

Mallow just smiled, "Well he likes it when I make him malasadas, they are his favorite thing to eat!" Mallow then sighed as she bit her lip and said, "Sadly you are in Kalos, so I don't think there is any way that you can get them, but they are basically a bread with a filling inside that is dipped in a large layer of sugar."

Ash sighed, he did not know how to cook or did not know how to get ahold of one, but then he thought of a certain combination that could be bound to do the trick: It had filling inside and all he had to do was dip it in sugar. "You know," Ash said with a confident smile. "I think I know just how to get a Kalos version of a malasada." Mallow looked up at Ash with a sense of admiration as she smiled. "I have to go quickly, I need to do this before Hau returns to Alola."

"Alright Ash, goodbye," Mallow said as she cut off the call. Ash pumped his fist as the screen showed nothing but a blank screen.

"Pikachu, let's go, we have to be quick!" Ash exclaimed as he and Pikachu began to race out of the room with the intent of reaching their hotel, most importantly the room in between the trio of rooms in the floor that he has.

 **With Serena:**

"Alright," Serena said with a smile after she finished filling the basket with macarons. "I hope Ash likes these, I made them for him as a congratulations for making it to the top 16!" Serena then opened the basket to expose the many colors of the macarons she made. Serena smiled at herself as she made her way towards the door, but Bonnie caught her with a serious smirk.

"Why don't you hand them to him personally?" Bonnie taunted.

"Huh? Oh because I… Well…" Serena trailed off before she then heard a loud knock on the door. "Oh someone is here!" Serena then set the basket of macarons down as she went to the door to be surprised to see who was standing behind the door. "A-Ash?"

Ash was panting on his knees as if he had been running, but he then caught his breath and looked back at Serena while saying, "Please tell me you made macarons…"

"Pika pika…" Pikachu sweatdropped as he looked at the raven haired trainer.

"I did…" Serena said with a confused tone, but then she slightly blushed and put a hand over her ribbon. "In fact, I kind of made them all for you, since you were awesome today!"

Ash ignored the last part as he ran towards the basket and said, "Thanks Serena, but now tell me, where is the sugar that you use to make the macarons?"

Serena fell flat as she noticed that Ash did not really get her hint. Bonnie also face palmed at Ash's stupidity as she watched Pikachu also getting to the basket like his trainer with a great amount of energy. Serena though, she recovered herself as she grabbed a large jar of sugar that she had in one of the cupboards. "Uh, here is the sugar Ash," Serena said with an unsure tone as she handed the sugar jar towards Ash.

Ash then took the jar and went to the open macaron basket. As soon as he reached the basket he poured all of the sugar on top of the macarons thus making a large white sparkling mess around him. Serena flinched and sweatdropped as she saw this as Bonnie put a hand over her mouth in shock. Serena then watched as Ash closed the basket with the macarons and gave it a big shake. "Alright, now every macaron should be coated in sugar!" Ash declared with triumph.

"Ash! Wait, if you eat them like that you could-"

"Pi pikachu!" Pikachu replied with a fist in the air with a great attitude as Ash and the electric rodent made their way back out the door.

"Thanks Serena for cooking these! I will love eating them!" Ash waved with a smile and the basket on one hand. Pikachu mimicked his trainer's action and then Ash went out the open door and closed it behind him.

"Get hyperactive…" Serena finished with a sigh before smiling. "Well, if he is going to the festival then he will be fine."

"Hehe, he might actually ask _you_ to go to the festival with him," Bonnie joked.

"Whhhhaaaattt?" Serena asked with a slight blush. "That won't happen, it is a festival and nothing more… Also, why would he want to ask me out to it?"

"Oh man Serena," Bonnie replied as she left the room with a smirk to go to the room next door. Bonnie turned around and saw that Serena had turned on the television while helping herself to some spare macarons that she had made for herself, so Bonnie decided to go next door. "Brock? Clemont?" Bonnie asked as she entered the room to see Clemont and Brock covered in soot.

"What is it Bonnie?" Clemont asked while wiping down his glasses.

"Well, I was thinking…" Bonnie then put her hands out and said, "Can us three go get something to eat tonight at around seven thirtyish?"

Brock then quirked and eyebrow and asked, "Why Bonnie? Why just us three?"

"Weeeeellll…" Bonnie smirked as she pointer her head in the direction of the room that she and Serena were sleeping in.

"Oh, I see," Brock replied with a smirk back at the lemon blonde girl before the latter's brother decided to speak up.

"What do you mean by, 'oh I see?' ?" Clemont asked.

"Maybe next time we see Korrina you will understand," Bonnie taunted as she made her way back to her room leaving the young inventor with a large blush on her face.

"Now… I think I might understand…" Clemont said with an extremely embarrassed tone to then catch a sight of Brock turning to him.

"So, who is this Korrina chick that Bonnie taunted you with?"

"Ummmmmm…" Clemont felt as his face began to heat up. "She is this one gym leader that… I'll tell you later!" Clemont pretty much shouted that last part to avoid losing circulation to his legs. At this Brock chuckled as Clemont sighed and blew out his intense blush.

 **With Ash:**

It did not take long for Ash and Pikachu to find Hau, in fact, Hau was up the staircase near the hotel sitting under a tree with his head hung down. Ash flinched at seeing someone so depressed as he came up to the green haired trainer, "Hau?" Ask asked as he approached the boy.

"Pika?"

"Huh?" Hau looked up and saw the raven haired trainer and his electric rodent in front of him. Ash noticed that Hau had a very tired look on his face. Looking closer, Ash noticed some red on Hau's eyes which probably indicated that the Alolan native was probably having a hard time coping with his loss. Ash sat down with his back slumped against the tree and as Hau noticed this gesture, he just monotonically asked: "Why are you here? Shouldn't you be celebrating?"

Ash shook his head and put the basket in between him and Hau, "I just wanted to see if you wanted a malasada."

"Malasada?" Hau asked with a bit of recoil at the proposal. He had to admit, he did not expect someone to offer him a malasada at this time, but he was not eager to have his favorite food, in fact, his mouth started to water at the thought of a malasada. "Sure, I guess I could have a couple…"

Ash then opened the basket and signaled for Hau to try some out as he grabbed one of the sugar coated macarons and put it on his mouth. Ash choked a little as he tasted it because of all the excess sugar he had put on top of the macarons, but they were very sweet. Hau reached into the basket and grabbed one with the thought of having a great time with trying a malasada so he put it into his mouth. As soon as the malasada interacted with his tastebuds he noticed the weird taste of a macaron that had excess sugar on it, but still swallowed it. "So…. ummm, are they alright?" Ash asked kind of nervously. Pikachu grabbed one, put it in his mouth and then felt himself feel a lot amount of electricity build up in him as he then collapsed with the electricity shocking himself.

Hau began to laugh a little at this as he then looked at Ash and Pikachu trying not to admit that the malasadas tasted terribly, in fact Hau knew that this was just a macaron covered in a lot of sugar anyways, but he just spoke up by saying, "Thanks for the thought, but seriously, you don't know anything about a malasada don't you…"

"Of course I do," Ash said with pride and relief knowing that Hauw as opening up to him, "It is a bread with filling and a sugar coating!" Ash then scratched his head, "Of course since this is Kalos I did not know where to find a malasada so I got my friend to make me some macarons and then I put sugar all over them."

"You still know nothing," Hau said with a weak smile while putting his hands behind his head, "The fact is that malasadas are made of bread, not different flavored pastry, also let's not forget that the filling can be anything from chocolate to coconut. Probably the biggest thing is that malasadas are fried, not baked." Hau then looked at Ash with a nervous face and asked, "Who told you anything about the fact that I liked malasadas?"

"Mallow did," Ash admitted as a gust of wind made his scarf blow a little. "I gave her a call to ask her of ways so that I could get you to open up, I asked her about something you liked as she responded with the fact that you like her malasadas, so I asked her what it was and she told me to get bread and cover it with sugar… so I tried my best."

Hau sighed at this as he then looked down and gave a smile at the ground, "Yea, Mallow is a very close person to me… But don't tell her this," Hau said as he saw Pikachu come close to him. Hau then scratched behind Pikachu's ear and made the electric mouse coo in pleasure as Hau then shifted his gaze at Ash, "The macarons that are supposed to be malasadas you gave me taste better than what she cooks... In fact, I don't like her cooking at all."

"What?" Ash asked in disbelief.

"Yea," Hau then laughed. "I tell her that I like the malasadas because she is a very close person to my heart… Well, she has been throughout the time I have met her and now she has declared herself to me… I didn't know she felt that way for me this whole time, but I guess she likes it alot when I compliment her cooking," Hau admitted. "Anyways, I get my malasadas at the nearby shop and feed my pokemon her malasadas because they seem to like it more."

"But then," Ash asked. "How can she make malasadas so bad?"

"You should have seen it when I did her cooking challenge," Hau laughed responding to Ash's question. "She made my two friends and me run out of the jungle with fire in our mouths because of how spicy the food was."

"Oh wow, so Alola must be a great home for you, isn't it?" Ash asked the Alolan native.

Hau nodded as he smiled, "Yea, but when I went to challenge the pokemon league, they did not have a conference, it was just an elite four challenge with someone of the kahunas, one of the trial captains and a different trainer that plays golf." Hau then sighed as she turned his gaze back at Ash, "I should not underestimate her though, I have heard that her flying types are extremely powerful."

Ash nodded at this, but then made his face get a little serious as a gust of wind passed through both trainers, "Hau, I just want to know." Hau looked at Ash with some curiosity and then Ash let the question rip: "Who is Lillie?"

"Oh," Hau said with a sad tone as he engaged his view down at the ground, "My sister, lately she has been asleep in a coma under life support because there was not enough money to get the resources necessary for the surgery to be done." Hau then sighed, "I attempted the Kalos League not with the intent of winning, but getting past the top 16. I knew eventually I would meet my match, but I did not expect to reach him right at the finish line…"

"Hau, I am so sorry," Ash said with sympathy after learning about Hau's true reason for needing to win the battle.

"It's alright Ash," Hau said with a sad smile. "I did what I could and it was not successful in the end. I guess my friends back in Alola are proud of me for doing so well, but now I don't know what to do next… I guess I could try and get this all behind me and head back to Alola and meet back up with my friends and see Lillie one last time."

"When are you leaving?" Ash asked with a serious tone.

"I guess as soon as possible," Hau said as he stood up on his feet. Ash did the same and looked at Hau in the eye as Pikachu got on Ash's shoulder. "I think being so far away from home for so long has really caught up to me…" Hau then shook his head, "Anyways, thank you for sharing with me you malasadas, they were a nice way of bringing me light after such a dark time."

"Hau…" that was all Ash could say as he saw the green haired boy smile and begin to walk away. Ash's eyes widened as his mind gave him a great idea. Before Hau could even get too far away, Ash put his hand on Hau's shoulder and Hau flinched at this as he turned around. "Hau, here," Ash said as he began to dig into his pocket.

"Huh?" Hau asked himself as he noticed Ash unravel a piece of paper within his hands and revealed the check for 200 thousand kaleuros. "Ash, what are you doing?"

"What do you think I am doing?" Ash asked with a smile as he then extended the arm with the check towards Hau. "Take this to Alola, you need it."

Hau put his arm out and pushed away Ash's arm, "I am sorry, I can't, you battled and deserved it, there is not a way I could just take this much money…"

"Pikachu," Pikachu said sadly as he saw this action. Ash though, he did not back down and resisted Ash's push.

"Hau, listen to me," Ash said as he then put the check into Ash's hands and closed it tight with this hands. "I lost someone in my life once, and I don't want you to go through that. I also had problems with money before, and I know what it was like to live in the streets." Ash then took a deep breath as he then looked at Hau in the eyes and kept talking: "I am battling in this league not for the money, but for the passion that I have in , on the other hand, you battled here for someone, you went through so much pain and work just to get here and that is more than enough to say that you deserve it…" Hau could not believe what he was hearing until Ash finally said one last thing: "If you won't take it for yourself, take it for Mallow so that she can see the same smiling and energetic boy she likes, and if not for that… Then at least take it for Lillie so that you can see her live another day."

"Pikachu!" Pikachu nodded his head agreeing with his trainer who was looking at Hau with a strong and serious face.

Hau then pulled his hands back to himself and looked back down at the check as tears started to form in his eyes. "Ash…" Hau said with a thankful tone: " _thank you_."

Ash smiled as he then began to see Hau walk away from him, and through the setting sun, Ash and Pikachu saw as Hau began to walk down the stairs and up towards the corner of the hotel with the exit down back towards the skyline of Lumiose City that radiated in the distance. Hau then turned around once more and looked back at Ash before he took the path down to the city. Ash could have sworn he saw Hau mouth one last thank you before he then turned back and began to walk away. His long green hair waving in the wind as he got farther and farther away. Ash then looked at Pikachu and then back at the smaller figure of Hau and muttered to himself: "You are very welcome Hau."

Ash then looked at the setting sun and went back down to the walkway in time to see that there was a clock at the top of a lamp post. It said 7:25 and Ash then made his eyes widen as he began to walk into the hotel remembering all about the festival. Ash then got on the elevator to go up to the floor the rooms were in. Just as he reached his floor, he was met with Brock, Clemont and Bonnie in front of the elevator opening, "Hey guys, what's up?"

"Nothing much, we are going to go get something to eat," Brock said with a smile.

"But the festival-"

"One guest allowed, and we suggest you go with Serena," Bonnie said quickly. "You still have to thank her for the macarons that she baked for you."

"Oh yeah," Ash replied sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head and Pikachu jumped down from his shoulder to get in front of him. "I guess I should ask her to go then, have fun!" Ash finished this by allowing the others the space to get into the elevator as they then descended towards the first floor. Ash then went towards Serena's room, which was the one in the middle and knocked on it. He noticed that there was no response, so he tried to see if the door knob would open, and sure enough it did, "Hello?" Ash said in a weird tone as he entered.

"Pika pika!"

Ash saw the trash can and looked around, he did not see Serena so he opened it and deposited the entire mountain of macarons into the trash can while putting the basket on top of the counter. Ash then flinched as he heard a voice behind him: "So it was too sweet for you after all?"

Ash flinched as he turned around to see the honey blonde girl in the red vest and blue ribbon standing behind him with her hands on her hips. "Well, you see I was trying to make malasadas, but since this is Kalos there was no way that I would be able to find one, so I kind of used your macarons as a template and then put the sugar on top."

Serena sighed as she walked up to the basket and said, "So, why did you want to eat malasadas?"

Ash just took a deep breath and said, "Just me wanting to inspire someone that has been having a hard time, that's all." Ash then turned his gaze back to Serena and said, "But the macarons were good by the way, just my stupidity that ruined them." Serena laughed at this as Ash then took a deep breath, "Well, now I want to tell you the real reason as to why I am here."

"Huh?" Serena cocked her head at this as she noticed Pikachu running up to her and getting on her shoulder while rubbing his cheeks with Serena's.

"Well, you see," Ash said nervously as he then noticed Serena's full attention on him. "I was wondering if you would like to come to the festival with me."

"Huh?" A red boiling Serena squeaked in a nearly inaudible voice as she then said with a shy smile, "Sure, I would love to…" Serena then looked down and smiled shyly again while saying, "Bonnie told you to ask me, didn't she?"

"Well, in reality she 'suggested' that I would ask you," Ash noticed that Serena got a little depressed at this, so he decided to mix in a little bit of what Bonnie had told him earlier to try and cheer her up, "I was going to ask you to go anyways, you see I still need to thank you for the macarons, without them, I would not have been able to give light to someone that has been going through so much pain."

"Ash," Serena said in awe at the last part before putting on a bright smile. "Alright then, we should get going shouldn't we?"

"Then it is settled," Ash exclaimed as he had Pikachu jump from Serena and into Ash's shoulder. "Let's go!" Ash responded as he took Serena by the hand and began to lead her out of the hotel room. "We should be able to hit the other side of the stadium if we begin running right now!"

"A-Ash!" Serena squeaked again as she was lead out the door and out of the hotel to the now night sky that was over the Lumiose Stadium.

 **With Hunter, Leaf, and Night:**

"Alright, we made it!" Hunter shouted with a fist in the air as they saw the festival decorations. The entrance was nice and there was a large section of the walkway just shut off. Hanging above the air were small lanterns that gave off light, similarly the walkway was filled with stands of food and games and in the middle of everything there were people dancing with others and their pokemon. At the entrance, Diantha was with a list of the people that were allowed to come in, and the trio approached the woman. "Hey Diantha, my name is Hunter, this is Eevee and it is a pleasure to meet you," Hunter said as he shook the Kalos Champion's hands.

"Eevee!" Eevee cried with a pridal position on Hunter's shoulder.

"Very nice to meet you too Hunter," Diantha replied as she shook the boy with the emerald green attire's hand. "And you must be his friends aren't you," Diantha said as she turned to Night and Leaf.

"I am Leaf, the pleasure is all mine," Leaf said with a small courtesy.

"And I am Night," Night replied with a smirk. "This is Jolteon here, nice to meet you!"

"Jol Jolteon!"

"Alright then," Diantha said as she eyed Night curiously. Diantha then turned her direction back at Hunter and said, "Well you are in the list, but you can only have one guest."

"I know, that is why I am bringing Leaf," Hunter said with a smile as he put his arm around the silver haired girl. Leaf blushed a little at this as Diantha then let the two into the festival.

"Enjoy you two, and I am guessing you are here to say goodbye to them?" Diantha asked as she turned her attention at Night and his Jolteon. Night and Jolteon let out a chuckle, but before Diantha could respond, Hunter came back:

"Um, I think you should let him in," Hunter said. Diantha turned back at Hunter with a cocked face as Hunter then said, "Well, I don't know, but that is the champion of the Soul Stadium you are talking to."

"Soul Stadium?" Diantha asked curiously. "Are you seriously _the_ Night Shock?"

"The one and only, am I right?" Night said with a sheepish face as he then turned to his Jolteon. "Jolteon and I would be honored if you let us stay."

Diantha sighed as she then said, "I guess I can make an exception." This made Hunter and Leaf have wide eyes of excitement as Diantha then turned back to Night that was not standing behind Diantha with his two friends, "But under one condition…" Diantha then pumped her fist and said, "Promise to have a battle with me."

"Eh?" Night asked with a little bit of a sigh as he then nodded his head with a smile, "I accept your challenge Diantha, but I won't go easy on you."

"I don't expect that from a champion," Diantha said as the other three began to walk into the party with their pokemon.

As soon as the group found a corner, Hunter then turned to Leaf and said, "Come on Leaf, let's go dance!" Leaf blushed a little as Hunter took her hand and dragged her away into the party with Eevee coming up behind the two.

Night sighed as he watched Leaf and Hunter dancing, "Guess love is something that I will never understand, even as I am a champion of my entire archipelago of islands." Night then turned to Jolteon and saw that the latter was interested in something, so he told Jolteon, "Go right ahead Jolteon, I plan to use Decidueye to face off against Diantha anyways." At this Jolteon nodded and headed off into the dancing crowd with a smile on his face. Night then pulled out Decidueye's pokeball and said, "Alright Decidueye come on out."

"Dueye," Decidueye said as he appeared in front of his trainer. The shiny Decidueye did not really attract any attention from anyone because Night figured that an Alolan pokemon is not really common here in Kalos. Night then went on to look at Decidueye and noticed the hooded owl had his hood tightened so that no one could see into the hood.

"Why are you so shy all of the sudden? I know you are a nerdy pokemon with your glasses, but come on? Why are you always like this?" Night asked his pokemon with a slight chuckle.

"Dueye," Decidueye said while looking away with an embarrassed look on his face.

"Oh brother," Night facepalmed at this obviously knowing that Decidueye's shy personality was something he could not get rid of.

Meanwhile, not too far away, Jolteon was scouting around as he saw a blue pokemon. He edged closer to see what it was and was shocked to see a Glaceon dancing in the middle of the dancefloor. Jolteon instantly grew heart shapes over his eyes as he began to approach the female Glaceon. "Jolteon?" Jolteon asked the Glaceon with a nervous blush.

"EMOL!" An Emolga landed next to Glaceon and began to charge up electricity in his cheeks while directing Jolteon to back off…

Jolteon sighed at this as he began to walk away with waterfall tears on his eyes. Jolteon then heard Emolga laughing behind him which caused the spiky electric type to look back at the Emolga and charge up a Shadow Ball on his mouth. Emolga looked slightly intimidated but then the Glaceon's trainer and the Emolga's trainer came near the commotion. Knowing he was a champion's pokemon, Jolteon reduced his dark spheric beam from launching and instead made it dissipate into thin air. "Jolteon teon Jolteon…" Jolteon said as he began to walk back towards where Night was.

Night noticed Jolteon look so depressed and asked him, "Jolteon, are you alright?"

"Teon Jolteon..." Jolteon looked back at the dance floor to where there was the Glaceon and Emolga dancing.

Night seemed to understand and sighed as he picked Jolteon up in his arms, "Alright Jolteon, you seriously need to tell me what is up with your addiction to Glaceons. You have already taken three shadow balls, a blizzard, and even gotten frozen by an ice beam… You really need to chill out…-I mean warm up."

"Jolteon… Jol Jolteon…" Jolteon replied while looking down with a sigh and a small blush because his trainer could notice his obsession with Glaceons.

 **With Ash and Serena:**

"Hey Diantha," Ash said as he approached the champion. Serena was a bit nervous behind Ash, but she managed to hold in a smile as she stood next to Ash.

Diantha looked at the two with a smile, almost like if she was expecting them to come, "Welcome you two, I just saw Calem and Tierno come with their guests as well, so I am guessing that this is your guest?" At this Ash nodded with a very eager attitude. "Enjoy your time here," Diantha said as she allowed the two in.

"Thanks!" Ash and Serena said in unison as they walked into the party with great amounts of excitement to then see the people dancing to the music and the great amounts of food being given out throughout the festival.

Ash was the first to see a stand that was handing out cookies and his mouth instantly watered, "Serena over here!" Ash chanted as he led Serena through the crowd of people to get to the stand. As Ash began to order, Serena felt something bump into her near her feet.

"Eevee!" It cried as it grabbed the attention of Ash as well. Serena and Ash both bent down to see the Eevee in front of them recoil at seeing them, but then ran back to jump on the shoulder of another person that was in a green attire. Ash and Serena took a good look at this person and noticed that he had jet black hair kind of like Calem's, the duo also noted that had an emerald green suit and green eyes.

"I'm sorry about that, Eevee and I got a little carried away," The boy said with a slight amount of embarrassment as another girl came up behind him.

Serena noted that she also had green eyes, but she had a fedora that had a pokeball symbol on it. Other than that, Serena also noted that she had a long pink blouse with a white skirt which then shifted Serena's gaze to the girl's long green hair. The girl then sighed as she looked at the boy and said, "Hunter, how could you even be such a klutz?" The girl then noticed the duo and the electric rodent staring at them and she put on an embarrassed smile, "Sorry you had to see that, my name is Leaf." The girl named Leaf then looked on at the boy that she had just called Hunter and said, "That here is my friend Hunter."

"Hi there," Hunter made a small wave as his Eevee also waved at Pikachu from shoulder to shoulder.

Ash then sighed as he got the cookies he ordered and said as he tried not to choke on the cookies, "My name is Ash, and this is my partner Pikachu!"

Serena then spoke up while putting out a nervous smile, "My name is Serena, nice to meet you!"

"It is great to meet all of you guys," Hunter said as he put his arms behind his head. "This conference has had me fired up for every battle! I am going to try my hardest and win this!"

"Not if I can't help but defeat you on the way," Ash smirked as the two initiated a rivalry immediately.

"Hey Ash!"

"Serena!"

The attention of the four trainers was then brought to Calem and Shauna who were walking with Tierno who had a girl next to her… She had a similar chubby body much like Tierno's, her hair was green and she also had brown eyes. Her clothes where a yellow top that had a large red ribbon along with an orange skirt while on her head she had a small magenta top hat.

"Calem! Tierno!" Ash exclaimed with excitement as he saw the two boys approach them.

"Shauna!" Serena shouted with glee as she then turned to the other girl and her eyes went wide with disbelief, "Nini! What are you doing here?"

Nini was the first to speak up, "I was actually here to be Tierno's guest since Trevor was sick today."

"Poor Trevor," Serena said with a sad smile. "Anyways, I am glad you guys could make it."

"Oh, by the way guys, this is Hunter and Leaf," Ash said as he motioned to the two foreign individuals. Hunter and Leaf put on smiles as they smiled back at the group who was now smiling. Ash then saw as for a second, the man with the cloak was staring right at him. "Not again…" Ash muttered this with slight intimidation. It was like if the man had been wanting to come to Ash and say something, or maybe even... _battle him?_

"You see him too, right?" Hunter said to Ash which gathered everyone's attention. "He is the same guy that knocked me out of the last league, of course I was not as strong as I am now, but he is definitely powerful, in fact I was taken down by his Darkrai and Aegislash."

"Darkrai?" Ash asked with a bit of intimidation. He recalled the last time he had battled a Darkrai and became extremely nervous by the fact of battling one again.

"He is only really using Aegislash now though," Hunter replied before he then narrowed his eyes and said, "Rumor has it that the man in the cloak was able to sweep Lance, champion of Kanto with only a Dragonite."

"A Dragonite is very powerful obviously, but to sweep a champion?" Calem asked with uncertainty. "I doubt it…"

"Anyways…" Serena said as she tried to get the conversation out of battles to which the other girls agreed. "How about we go enjoy-"

"Ladies and gentlemen!" A voice boomed through the entire festival grabbing everyone's attention. At that very moment the music stopped as the Champion Diantha walked among the crowd of people at the festival and then put herself in the middle of the dance floor, which was just concrete, but the area where people were dancing and then the voice grew again. Looking around, Ash noticed that it was a person in refereeing clothes standing next to Diantha and making a large space so that everyone can gather around. "We will be having an exhibition match between Champion of Kalos Diantha!"

The crowd then cheered, even Ash himself as he got Serena and the others to get front row vision of the battle. "Go Gardevoir!" Diantha shouted with glee as she threw a pokeball into the air that then revealed the psychic and fairy type bipedal pokemon.

"Devoir!" Gardevoir said with grace as she danced around and her mega stone glistened in the light of the lanterns.

Ash and Serena then saw as another teenager with a Jolteon. Ash noticed he had black hair with blue spiky outlines and dark gray pants. Along with that, Ash saw that the teenager also had a black undershirt with a black blazer like jacket with blue streaks running through it. Ash saw as he began to walk towards the battlefield. "And Night, the champion of Soul Stadium!"

"Yea! Go Night!" Hunter and Leaf chanted in unison as Ash then noticed Night to be the same guy that Ash had ran into a couple of days ago. Ash went wide eyed at this as he then noticed that the crowd was not cheering for him, but mostly laughing as Jolteon stood next to him. Ash noticed the laughs coming mostly from an Emolga who was on top of some trainer's head, but he ignored it as he then saw the teenager dressed in black and blue to look around with an awkward look on his face and then facepalm.

Ash heard as the boy sighed and walked out of the battlefield to a sweat dropping Jolteon. Ash could not believe that this Night person was a champion so he turned to Hunter and asked, "This guy is actually a champion?"

"He is really strong, you will see…" Hunter then trailed off to see Night bringing an owl like pokemon that had a turquoise and black coloring that sort of matched his trainer's by the wing.

"Uhhhh…" everyone as murmuring to themselves as Ash could see that the pokemon that Night had brought into the area where the battle would take place was using his other wing to pull on two vines that were closing the opening between the inside and outside of the feathered hoodie.

"Come on Decidueye," Ash heard Night chant with pride as he then noticed that Decidueye shook his head as in no. "Oh man, not the shyness again…" Night said as he facepalmed at the owl like pokemon.

"What pokemon is that?" Ash asked Hunter.

"It is Decidueye, believe it or not, that is actually a shiny pokemon, in fact, this is one of Night's strongest, but," Hunter then trailed off as he looked on ahead. "Decidueye is very adamant when his shyness kicks in. That is why his attack power goes beyond the limits." Ash turned to his right and noticed Serena almost like she was chuckling at Night's embarrassment. To Serena though, Decidueye was a carbon copy of herself in many ways as she recalled being known as a shy person as well.

Night then went wide eyed as Diantha smirked, "Let the battle!" The referee started.

"Oh no…" Night gasped.

"BEGIN!"

 **Battle music begin! Diantha (Gardevoir) vs Night (Decidueye):**

"NO!" Night shouted in panic as he looked at the ref. "You have to let Decidueye snap out of it, come on!"

Diantha just smirked, she thought this was going to be an easy win for her, "Check mate! Use shadow ball!" Gardevoir began to charge up her dark ball of sinister power in front of her in between her arms and then shot it in the direction of Decidueye.

Night narrowed his eyes as he watched the attack collide with Decidueye. The owl like pokemon fell back in a small explosion in front of Night and with his wing then letting go of the vines thus causing the hoodie to open up to expose the dark face of the owl with red glasses. Decidueye then stood up and shook of the pain as he narrowed his eyes at the psychic type in front of him. "Use spirit shackle!" Night commanded with a fist out and a confident tone.

"DUEYE!" Ash watched in awe as the hooded owl then began to make a dark glowing arrow quill with the vines and then launched it like a bow using the vines as a string. The arrow was about to collide with Gardevoir when suddenly Ash noticed Diantha nod her head like she did with her battle with him and then Gardevoir dodged the attack with the blink of an eye. Ash watched as Night flinched a little at this, but he kept his cool a little more than Decidueye did that legitimately jumped at seeing the way Gardevoir dodged.

"Keep it together Decidueye," Night told his pokemon who then instantly calmed down and looked back at the field.

"Use shadow ball once more!"

"Sucker punch!" Night commanded with a fist in the air. Ash and Serena's mouth went agape as they saw how as Gardevoir began to charge up the attack, Decidueye looked like he teleported in front of Gardevoir and slammed his black glowing wing into Gardevoir's abdomen thus causing the latter to stumble back instantly with her fist on the ground to stop herself. When Gardevoir looked up she looked extremely amused by what happened as for Diantha, Ash noticed her looked a little shocked.

"Use moonblast!" Diantha commanded with her hand out.

"Garde…" Gardevoir then began to power up a colorful beam and then instantly shot it in the direction of Decidueye with great power.

"Go right through it with brave bird!" Night ordered with a confident smile. Ash watched in amazement as Decidueye then made himself glow bright blue and then begin to charge through the bright beam of energy that was headed in his direction. Ash then watched with wide eyes as Decidueye began to over power through the beam and start to creep up on Gardevoir to the point that the psychic type had wide eyes of the flying type attack colliding.

"Reflect!" Diantha shouted as Gardevoir put the shield in front of her with both of her arms only for Decidueye to increase his speed and go right through the shield and slam into Gardevoir once more. Diantha gritted her teeth at this as she noticed that the reflect had not done anything at all. "What? How did it not work?"

Night laughed in amusement at this as Decidueye landed in front of him with a very powerful stance, "I am surprise you don't know that Decidueye is a grass and ghost type, not a grass and flying type." Diantha recoiled at this as Night and Jolteon smirked.

"A ghost type huh?" Ash asked in awe as he watched Decidueye then put a wing over his two vines and smirk.

"Yea," Hunter said next to Leaf. "Night still has not shown his full power yet which is amazing."

"That is amazing," Calem and Tierno said in unison as the two girls that were accompanying them all face palmed.

Diantha looked like she was having the battle of her life as she was reaching for her keystone, only for a random electro ball to slam into Decidueye. Night and Jolteon both looked at the direction to where it came from to see the Emolga just laughing on top of the lines that contained the lanterns. Decidueye, with a red irritated mark on his forehead then turned his vines around and shot a spirit shackle at the Emolga as Jolteon also launched a shadow ball at the flying squirrel. Both attacks hit and then the Emolga landed on the battlefield as Jolteon went out from his side next to Night and pounced next to the electric and flying type.

"No, guys, come on…" Night said as he fell flat.

Hunter and Leaf could not believe it either as they also fell flat along with everyone watching the battle. Diantha just stood there in confusion as she then noticed a Glaceon jump from the crowd and target at ice beam at Jolteon. The electric type dodged in the last second, but the beam kept going and struck Night.

Everyone just stood there silently as the ice beam froze over Night's body and caused him to look like a frozen popsicle.

"Jolteon…"

"Decidueye…"

Night's pokemon stood in front of his trainer's ice cube with a worried look on their faces until Decidueye's shyness took over again and caused the grass and ghost type to use his wing to close his hoodie.

"Jolteon teon!" Jolteon commanded at Decidueye to help him break his trainer out of his trapped state.

"Decidueye," Decidueye responded with a nod only to walk forward and through his blindness slam his head into the ice and fall on his back completely dazed like a cold piece of metal.

The entire festival was silent of that one moment trying to comprehend what just happened…

 **A little later:**

After Night was allowed to thaw out, he let his pokemon have a rest which ended the battle with an inconclusive result, not like Diantha minded really, she understood how the battle was interrupted in the first place.

At that very moment, the monitors on the lamp posts also displayed the matchups for the next day. Ash saw that Tierno and Calem landed the same spot which meant that they would have to go against each other. Ash turned his head as he watched his two friends nod at each other. Ash then noticed how Damian and the Satoshi guy had their battles as well against some other trainers that Ash did not know.

"Ash look, you have the battle right after Tierno and Calem," Serena told Ash from the side. Ash looked to see who he had landed a battle with and could not help but smile to see it was against Hunter. At this Ash turned to see the jet black haired boy also with an amused face looking at him with an interested face as both trainers smiled at each other.

"Yea, I think that Hunter and I will hopefully have a memorable battle," Ash said as he then noticed that Pikachu got off of his shoulder to run around Ash's feet. Ash smiled nervously as he looked into Serena's eyes and then noticed that the music actually changed, it was a lot slower now and looking around, Ash saw as couples began to pair up. Ash then turned to Serena noticing as her bright blue eyes glistened in the moonlight and as Serena's honey blonde hair shone with the light given from the lanterns. Ash found it hard to speak at first, but then he said, "Serena?"

Serena smiled at Ash and asked, "Yeah?"

Ash found it hard to talk with Serena's bright smile, but then he found his heart beginning to race as he scratched his cheek, "Why are people dancing together like that?" Serena's mouth went agape a little as Ash's eyes widened thinking that he probably should not have asked that. At that moment, Ash hid his mouth and the bottom of his nose on his scarf and said, "Sorry, I should not have asked that…"

"Ash…" Serena said nervously as he noticed that she began to have a tint of red on her cheeks. "Can you dance with me before we go back to the hotel?"

"Huh?" Ash asked in distraught as he then shook his head with a smile and said, "Sure." With that, Ash and Serena found a spot in the dance floor and Ash began to see that he was having trouble knowing what to do: "so… Now what?"

Serena chuckled a little as she put her hands over his shoulders and began to away from side to side at a rhythm that was easy for Ash to follow. "Allow me to lead," Serena then said as she reached for Ash's hands and put his right hand on her hip and then reached to keep holding his left hand. "Dancing is not hard, just relax."

"O-ok," Ash said nervously as he relaxed his muscles and began to sway in the direction that Serena swayed to at the tempo of the music. Ash could barely take his hands off the honey blonde haired girl that now had a lot of pink around her cheeks. Ash noticed that the pink splotches then became red lines that ran from her cheeks and up and above the bridge of her nose to then begin to turn her pink shade into a bright crimson. Ash found this adorable as he began to scan around and decided to risk everything he was doing as he then let go of the hand he had on Serena's hip and gave the girl a twirl around.

"Huh?" Serena gasped aback taken back by surprise at the sudden twirl as she ended back in Ash's arms staring at his bright auburn eyes. She then recalled that day in Pallet Town where she first met those pairs of eyes and she gave a shy smile to the ground.

"Hehe, I am not so bad, am I?" Ash asked as he kept swaying with Serena.

"I guess not, you are actu-"

Ash noticed as Serena tripped on her brown boot and she began to fall back. Ash was quick and with a quick motion he put his arms around Serena and caught her right before she hit the ground. Ash then noticed he was staring at her eyes as he noticed a shiny glint in Serena's fluid sapphire eyes.

Then it happened: Ash and Serena both felt as a _glint of pink light shined through their eyes in a loop manner and then disappeared_ with a quick _zing_. A sound that both of them heard and then made their heart rates pick up.

Ash put Serena back up to her feet as the two had a little chuckle. At that moment Serena then said to Ash, "I had fun, why don't we head back?"

"Yea, sure," Ash said with a smile that made his heart rate pick up. Ash then began to walk with Serena back to the hotel that was at the other side of the stadium it was a long walk, but one that Ash was now looking forward to.

After saying their goodbyes to everyone that they knew, Serena and Ash began to walk next to each other through the night sky and quiet, empty concrete. Ash now found himself sneaking glances at Serena… Which he sometimes caught her sneaking glances back at him. It made his heart race a little as both of their hands mingled next to each other. Ash snapped red as his hand almost brushed upon Serena's thus causing his hand to open in shock… Of nervousness.

He did not understand why, now he was feeling so nervous around her…

It was like, that zing changed him to look at his friend in a way that he never understood…

And he still didn't.

 **A/N: Hotel Transylvania ZINGGED! Well it was an Amourshipping story! What did you expect? Anyways, it will happen soon enough give it his time, Ash had some subtle feelings for Serena with the hints he was giving, but thanks to what just happened… He is starting to develop a crush and the best part is… HE DOESN'T KNOW IT!**

 **Anyways, this chapter was long xD!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **Nexxus176: :D**

 **Guest 1: Of course I will continue this trend "Guest Reviewer"! Glad you enjoyed!**

 **Guest 2: Happy with the result BB? 3**

 **NinjaFang1331: Thanks for enjoying the battle xD Sorry for the wait!**

 **TrainerKSlord: Or let's all cheer for how Ash pretty much saved Lillie! HIP HIP HOORAY!**

 **ArmorshippingFan: Hau didn't, Ash did though :)**

 **Alex Ho: Well, that was sad bro, you wanted Ash to win but Lillie to die? Anyways, Ash wins and Lillie lives :)**

 **RedAce16: I had this planned for a couple months now, so I hope you liked how it went out!**

 **Also thank you guys who followed and kept up with the story! You guys are the best!**


	39. Chapter 39

**With Ash walking towards the stadium:**

"So Ash," Ash heard as the young inventor of the group looked at him while adjusting his glasses. Ash turned to him with a slight quirk of an eyebrow so that Clemont could continue. "What will be your strategy for your battle against Hunter? I know that Hunter will probably not be an easy opponent, in fact from what I have seen I can barely be able to calculate Hunter's power."

Brock then nodded as he came up to the raven haired trainer from the other side, "Clemont is right Ash, you need to think carefully about how you are going to battle because being your first full battle is something that would end up costing you if you are not careful."

Ash just sighed as he stopped and took a deep breath. He just wanted to forget a little about his battle with Trevor and enjoy the beautiful sunlight that the day was bringing to Kalos. The people walking through the concrete was extensive as they piled into the stadium through the entrances. Ash noticed the shadow of the morning casting a large black shadow over the group as Ash then sighed as he turned to the others and said as his scarf waved a little in the wind, "Don't worry guys, I am confident in my abilities and my team. I think I can manage Hunter."

"He's right," Everyone's eyes went to the honey blonde haired girl that had both of her fists pumped and a vibrant smile that shone despite the darkness of the shadow overhead. Serena then put a hand to her hair fedora and smiled even brighter as she said, "Ash will win, I am sure of it! If he doesn't give up until the end and always keeps his head up he is unstoppable!"

Ash felt his heart began to race as he watched Serena's smile causing him to smile himself. Pikachu, who was on Ash's shoulder was also smiling at Serena knowing that she had full confidence in Ash and his team to win the battle. "Serena is right, we have to give Ash the most support that we can!" Bonnie chanted as she grabbed Clemont's hand and began to drag him past the gates through which everyone was walking into the stadium. Ash could not help but smile as he then watched Brock follow close behind them as well.

"Pikachu, are you ready?" Ash asked his electric rodent. The one who instantly smiled at Ash knowing that the battle would be won if confidence was put into everything that is done in the battlefield.

"Ready as always," Ash recoiled at this as he saw Serena begin to walk behind the others in the way towards the stadium. Ash had his mouth open agape as he saw the young performer vanish into the crowd. Ash then smiled as he remembered that his battle would not be in a long time, so he also began to walk into the stadium with the intent of not going to the stands like everyone else, but on the way, he ran into someone:

"Ash," Calem said as he approached Ash from the front in the empty hallways of the hexagonal stadium. Ash smiled as he approached Calem and noticed that the latter had come out of the trainer's lounge. This made Ash believe that Calem would be one of the next to battle.

"Calem, are you up next?" Ash asked.

"Sure am," Calem replied with a pump of his fists. "I am going to have to get through Tierno first though, so wish me luck!" With this, Calem then walked around Ash and up the stairs.

Ash watched Calem disappear into the sounds of a crowd cheering and into the white light that was opaque to what was at the other end. Ash then took a deep breath as he entered the trainer's lounge knowing that his battle would be right after Calem's. Ash looked at the room and noticed that there was some refreshments and a monitor that was displaying what was going on in the battlefield. Ash watched as Calem and Tierno stood across from each other and how the scoreboard featured both trainers with six pokemon available to battle with. Ash decided that he should take the time and do something else so he signaled for Pikachu to stand near the other side of the lounge as he took out all five other pokeballs from his belt and made them flash out.

"Ninja!"

"Gruaw!"

"Dra!"

"Vern!"

"Tile!"

"Pika!"

"Alright guys!" Ash declared with a pumped fist as he then felt relieved that neither Goodra nor Charizard had gone through the roof of the spacious room. "Our first match will not be easy at all, I have seen some of what his team can do, and trust me, Hunter will be a good obstacle for us to begin climbing." All of Ash's pokemon made a battlecry as Ash chuckled, but continued: "This will be a 6 on 6 battle meaning that this is going to be the first battle where I have to rely on everyone of you." Ash then put his head down and rubbed his scarf a little out of nervousness as he sat kneeled down in front of his pokemon. "Look guys, this is our passion and you guys are the most dependable and reliant poke- no… _friends_ that I could ask to battle along side me."

"Pika!" Pikachu chanted as then put himself in between the group and then put his hand out as in to make a chant as an actual team.

Ash smirked as he saw this, so he put his hand on top of Pikachu's. Ash then noticed as a webbed blue hand, green pair of claws also followed by an orange and blood red claw to finish off with one very slimy hand to be put on top of all the hands which made the group laugh at amusement about Goodra's permanent condition of being slimy to the touch. "Are you guys ready?" Ash chanted as he then began to pump his hand up and down. All of the pokemon in the room did the same as Ash then exclaimed: "Gooooooo… TEAM!"

With that, everyone threw their hands into the air with power and great determination while making a battlecry.

Ash knew now, the challenge was about to begin.

 **A/N: So we are going to begin the chapter with Calem against Tierno and then we are going to shift the perspective to Ash against Hunter. Keep in mind that this battle will not be like you guys expect so get ready!**

 **I am expecting to write a decently long chapter, but I may have to make the individual battles a little shorter, mostly because of how I have Ash vs Hunter planned out.**

 **Anyways, the battle will begin soon! Ash against Hunter is the main focus of this chapter and I expect this battle to be awesome regardless of who wins!**

 **Anyways, without further ado, let's get right into the chapter!**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 39- A Confusing Strategy To Battle!

 **At the battlefield:**

" _Amazing! And Calem's Chesnaught has already done a lot of damage to Delibird!"_

Calem looked up at the scoreboard and smirked to see how the battle was going:

 **Tierno:** _Ludicolo Raichu Hitmontop Swanna_ (pokeball) **Delibird**

 **Calem:** _Talonflame_ (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) **Chesnaught**

Calem then saw as Delibird was on the ground of the ice field that was being used to battle in. Calem put his arm out to the sound of the cheering crowd and smiled as he put on the next attack, "Finish it off with rollout!"

"Naught!" Chesnaught cried as he began to fly in the direction of the fallen pokemon with an attempt to finish it off.

Tierno widened his eyes as he then noticed that he had to do something before Delibird could get hit. With this, Tierno pumped his fist as he made a dance move and shouted, "Destiny Bond!" Calem's eyes went wide as the ice and flying type made a purple aura surround him as soon as Chesnaught slammed his rolling body into it.

Instead the ref watched as the move had declared Delibird unconscious, but just before he could make his call, Chesnaught got surrounded by a dark aura that suddenly caused him to collapse to the ground as well. The crowd was surprised at this as they raised the volume of their cheering towards the battle. "Both Delibird and Chesnaught are unable to battle, which means that it is a draw!"

" _This is unbelievable! Tierno managed to defeat Chesnaught by using destiny bond at the last second, which is a move that knocks down the opponent with the pokemon that had originally fallen!"_

Tierno and Calem both recalled their pokemon as Calem smiled over at Tierno, "Wow, you really got me there, I did not expect that."

"It was just a combination of moving and grooving!" Tierno smiled as he gave a twirl around his trainer platform and then put a pokeball out on his hand and threw it, "My last Pokemon… Go! Blastoise!"

"Toise!" Blastoise cried as he materialized from the pokeball that was thrown into the ice. Blastoise then stopped his foot down on the ice to intimidate Calem, but the jet black haired trainer found it amusing to see such a powerful pokemon in front of him.

"So, you want to go all out?" Calem asked as he then threw a pokeball out into the ice. "Go Gallade!" The pokeball arched in the air with great amounts of power before opening to a flash of light that caused the bipedal blade pokemon to stand with his right blade in front of him with a powerful stance. The referee then signaled to resume the battle, and Calem made the first move, "Use psycho cut!"

"Use hydro cannon!" Tierno instantly retaliated as the stands cheered on the two attacks in the hexagonal shaped stadium that had sun pouring down on the field to make the ice reflect. Blastoise launched two balls of water that headed in the direction of Gallade, but the green bipedal pokemon made his blades glow pink and thus sliced into the hydro cannon to then begin to run and jump into the air while not slipping and launch two disk shaped pink blades at Blastoise. "Quick Blastoise use skull bash!"

"Toise!" Blastoise then made himself withdraw into his shell as the two attacks slammed into him with not doing any damage before then coming out of the shell and begin charging through the ice towards Gallade.

"Gallade use stone edge to stop it from getting any nearer!" Calem commanded with slight panic. Gallade quickly made his white blade slam into the ground thus making a barrage of blue rocks shoot out from the ground and begin to go in the direction of the Blastoise. Blastoise closed the gap with the rocks, but instead of taking damage, he began to overpower the rocks and smash right through. Calem gritted his teeth as he noticed how Blastoise slammed right into Gallade who was standing still.

"Gall… ade…" Gallade grunted on his knees as Blastoise returned back to being in front of his trainer while performing a break dancing move in the ground that Tierno was doing at the same time.

" _Amazing, and Gallade has been hit by a massive skull bash! What will Calem do at this point."_

Calem smiled as he then revealed his watch this making he stands begin to quiet down. The trainer then touched his keystone that began to make prongs react with the prongs that came from the mega stone around Gallade's neck. "GALLADE! MEGA EVOLVE!" Gallade then made a battle cry as he began to glow white with the effect of growing larger and more powerful features. As soon as the light died down, Calem noticed that there was now a Gallade with really large blades while also having a cape like structure around his torso.

" _Unbelievable! And Gallade mega evolved into Mega Gallade!"_

The crowd roared at this as Tierno and Calem smirked at each other with Tierno putting his arms out, "We don't need mega evolution, Blastoise use ice beam!" Blastoise quickly got to work by making his canons portray a light blue ball that then shot out as a light blue ray that had a freezing path.

Calem pumped his fist, "Run and dodge through it!" Gallade began to run as he saw the first ice beam come. He dodged right and kept running with blinding speed as the ice beam made a little nick of ice on the field. Gallade then dodged left followed by jumping into mid air to avoid two for freezing attacks from Blastoise. "Now use leaf blade!"

"Gall… ADE!" Gallade shouted as he downcut on Blastoise's head with great amount of power coming from green blades. The blue turtle with the red shell recoiled to be in front of his trainer and get up slowly after the attack to which the crowd was chanting with excitement.

"Blastoise! Use rapid spin!" Tierno commanded as he extended his fist. Blastoise made himself spin at a blinding speed and then began to charge the Gallade that was waiting patiently in front of him. Gallade seemed to smirk at this as he also put his arm out.

"Jump and then use psycho cut!"

"Gal…" Gallade jumped into the air and made his blades glow purple as the Blastoise passed below him with a large speed that missed. Gallade then swung his arms before crossing them and hitting Blastoise with a very powerful pair of purple blades that made Blastoise fall in front of Tierno very dazed and barely being able to get up.

"Blastoise no!" Tierno panicked as he then saw as Calem went for his finishing move.

"Use close combat!" Calem shouted with a victory stance as Gallade instantly at blinding speed appeared in front of Blastoise with white limbs which then slammed right into Blastoise.

"Toise!" Hit in the head.

"Ade!" Strikes the abdomen.

"Toise…." Blastoise then fell in front of Tierno with a large dust cloud around him and grunted: "Blastoise…" After this, Blastoise did not get back up.

"Blastoise is unable to battle," The ref declared as he raised his hand. "Gallade wins which means that the win goes to Calem from Vaniville Town!"

With that the crowd cheered and Calem's face showed off that he had won on the scoreboard.

 **The trainer's lounge:**

Ash watched the monitor with a serious face as he felt Greninja's pokeball on his belt. That was as definitely his goal of the tournament, no doubt. With this, Ash smirked at the monitor as he watched Gallade turn to his original form and Calem along with Tierno share a friendly handshake before turning back to the door that was behind him.

"Pikachu, are you ready?" Ash asked his pokemon on his shoulder as he made his way through the door and went up the the stairs that lead towards the dugout.

On the way, Ash saw as Calem headed his way and crossed him. Ash smiled at Calem as they made slight eye contact. After that, the two crossed and began to move away from each other. Ash could hear as the crowd was cheering louder and louder as he got closer to the trainer platform.

As soon as Ash's vision stepped into the light. His vision went white.

" _Ash!"_

 **At the stands:**

"Awesome battle Calem!" Shauna praised as she saw Calem come towards them after coming through the exit from the stands. Tierno was also from him, and some attention was being brought to the two trainers from the other people near the group since they just saw the battle. Shauna also noticed Tierno and smiled warmingly towards him, "You did well too Tierno."

"Thanks," Both trainers said in unison as they took their seats and looked onwards onto the hexagonal stadium. It was also evident that most of seats were taken as when looking around the large sets of seats were covered with many people. Looking at the scoreboard, there was the names of Ash and Hunter along with the five empty pokeballs that indicated to who was going to be used as well.

"Guys! Look! Ash is coming!" Bonnie shouted as she stood up and began to wave along with the others while Dedenne and Squishy also made their chants. "GO ASH!"

"Good luck Ash," Clemont said softly with his hands on his knees watching Hunter stand across from the raven haired trainer. At the same time Brock also yelled his wishes towards Ash to win the battle, of course Ash and Pikachu would not hear it, but it was worth it.

Serena gripped her ribbon as she looked down at the arena and then looked up at the sun to see the roof of the stadium with the sun beaming down on the arena and the large gap between Ash and Hunter.

" _This will be a battle between Ash and Hunter! I am extremely excited for this!"_

"Good luck Ash, show them!" Tierno and Trevor chanted towards the raven haired trainer. The former forgetting about his recent knock out from the tournament to cheer on for the winner.

Calem looked at Ash with a serious face and smirked. He knew that if there was going to be anyone that was capable of beating Hunter, it had to be Ash.

 **At the battle:**

"Ash, I am looking forward to this, beating you here will be just another step to get to the top," Hunter told Ash with a bright smile on his face.

"Hehe," Ash chuckled as he then rubbed his nose and looked up towards Hunter, "I am planning on winning this!" Ash then pumped his fist. "Let's make this a battle we would never forget! No holding back!"

"Agreed Ash, I don't want it any other way!" Hunter replied while also pumping his fist mirroring Ash.

The scenery moved with a smooth gesture as it showed the sun beaming down between the two trainers as the field came up between the two trainers. The rock field came up and Ash and Hunter smirked at each other as Pikachu and Eevee went down from their respective trainers and joined them in the trainer platforms.

The referee then looked at both trainers and said: "This will be a 6 on 6 pokemon battle. Substitutions are allowed and the battle will be over when all pokemon on either side are unable to continue. Furthermore, after three pokemon on either side are unable battle, there will be an intermission to change fields." The referee then raised his hand and shouted. "Reveal your first pokemon!"

"Zapdos let's go!" Hunter commanded as he threw a pokeball outwards into the air. The pokeball then shattered open causing the flashing light to materialize into the electric and flying legendary pokemon. Zapdos made a battle cry that made Ash's ears go on fire because of how powerful it was along with the amount of electricity that was crackling around the pokemon.

" _And Hunter decides to lead with his Zapdos!"_

The crowd cheered in approval as Ash smirked at this. Ash then took a pokeball from his belt and extended it while expanding the size: "Charizard I choose you!"

"GRUAW!" Charizard grunted as he landed in front of Ash with a powerful sound that even Ash knew could rival Zapdos' cry. Hunter watched in amazement as the fire and flying type pokemon landed across from him and gently touching the ground with his orange legs and the mega stone on the harness glistened in the sun light.

" _So it will be a battle of Charizard against Zapdos! I am psyched to see who wins this exchange!"_

The scene then whipped around to show off the large hexagonal stadium as the referee put up his hands. The dark spots being lit up by hexagonal lights along with the scoreboard that now updated to portray the pokemon that are going to battling:

 **Ash:** (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) **Charizard**

 **Hunter:** (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) **Zapdos**

"Let the battle…

BEGIN!"

 **Battle music begin! Ash (Charizard) vs Hunter (Zapdos):**

"The first move will go to us!" Hunter declared as he pointed his finger forward. "Zapdos start things off with heat wave!"

"Doooooossss!" Zapdos cried as the legendary electric and flying type made his wings flap causing a wave of fire energy to disperse in the direction of Ash. The energy quickly collided with Charizard, who put his hands in front of him to shield himself, but with little to no success as the fire and flying type felt his knee touch the ground.

" _And Hunter starts things off with an extremely powerful heat wave! It is doing damage despite the typing of Charizard!"_

"This could be trouble…" Ash gritted his teeth as he also shielded his face from the embers flowing in his direction. Feeling the extensive heat was something that he knew could be a burden for many of his pokemon, but he thought that maybe it could be possible to use the wind against the movement of the blaze. Ash then put his arm out and said, "Charizard, I know you can pull through this!" Ash then saw as Charizard looked back at him and nodded. "Fly into the air and use dragon claw!"

"Gruaw!" Charizard shouted as he flapped his wings and jumped into the air and up to above the wave of inferno to climb up to the sun above him. Charizard then let off another audible roar to everyone that was watching as he summoned two scaly blades of energy on his two hands.

Hunter looked up with a serious face and pointed towards Charizard, "Zapdos, get up there and use thunderbolt!" Zapdos instantly stopped his blazing hell fire and flapped his wings to make himself ascend to attempt and be on par with Charizard. Zapdos then made himself crackle in electricity before shooting lightning towards the fire type.

"Block it!" Ash commanded with urgency as he saw the risk of getting hit. Charizard roared as he made his green claws stop the lightning from causing to much damage. Ash then put his arm out as he shouted, "Go for it!"

"GRUAW!" Charizard shouted as he made his way through the thunderbolt and slashed Zapdos right on the stomach to then cause Zapdos to fall towards the ground in pain.

" _And Ash has Zapdos on the run already! This is amazing!"_

"Now use flare blitz!" Ash ordered while pumping both of his fists. Charizard made himself glow with a blue infernal aura as he then began to charge against the Zapdos that was still dazed from the previous attack.

"Dodge it!" Was the command that Hunter issued as Zapdos barely dodged the attack that was coming by doing a semi barrel roll and falling back towards the ground. Zapdos began to fall before then retracting his wings to pick up speed, then right before hitting the rocky battle field, Zapdos pulled up and caused a lot of dust to be picked up on the field before Hunter then making the next attack: "Use wild charge!"

"ZAPDOS!" Zapdos shouted as he made himself glow in electricity before charging head on against the fire burning Charizard.

" **Clash clash clash!"** that was the sound that was heard as the two pokemon collided in mid air numerous times. This included both of them encircling each other before flying into each other again and again. Just then, both pokemon separated as they then flew at the level of the stands on the stadium.

 **At the stands:**

" **Swoosh!"** Night and Leaf both recoiled at the shockwave of the wind that happened when Zapdos flew over head. Night then turned around with his mouth agape as he noticed Zapdos curve up at a command from Hunter that was heard through the speaker system to be steel wing. Night then witnessed as Zapdos made his wings glow white and larger before then curving around to be inverted and straightening out to dive towards Charizard who had just been commanded to use seismic toss.

"Whoa…" Leaf gasped as she noticed how Charizard and Zapdos collided with Charizard trying to hold onto Zapdos' white glowing wings before both pokemon then crashed into the ground with a large thump that made the dust on the rocks pick up.

"Amazing," Serena muttered from the other side of the stadium as she put herself on the edge of her seat with a racing heartbeat. She felt like this was so far the most intense battle of the entire Kalos League and from looking down towards the trainers, she noticed they were enjoying them. Serena looked at Hunter and noticed his smile, it looked like he was having a lot of fun. Turning to Ash, Serena noticed a genuine smile as a shock wave from the previous collision made his scarf wave around him along with Pikachu trying to hold on in order to not get blown away. Serena then put a hand on her ribbon and wished the best of luck to Ash knowing that this would not be easy.

"Go Ash go!" Bonnie chanted from next to Clemont as she watched the battle unfold under her.

"I can't believe Charizard is standing up so well against a legendary pokemon," Trevor said with a smile as he looked at Charizard and Zapdos exchange dragon claw and steel wing on the ground. At this Shauna and Tierno nodded as Brock and Calem put their hands to their chins wondering how Ash could pull it off with Hunter.

 **At the battle:**

"Zapdos finish this off with thunderbolt!" Hunter called out as he watched both pokemon slowly rise up to the air. Zapdos made his wings generate electricity before then firing it off at the ground. The electricity made a zigzag motion across the ground before reaching dangerously close position to Charizard.

"Dodge it Charizard!"

"Gruaw!" Charizard grunted as the fire type flew into the sky with the intent of not getting hit by the electricity. As Charizard flew into the sky, Zapdos shot numerous thunderbolts in the direction of Charizard, but Charizard kept dodging and weaving from side to side and doing loops just as the crackling beam was about to hit. Suddenly, Zapdos stopped and took a closer aim before making a thunderbolt go in the direction of Charizard's path. "Gruaw…." Charizard grunted as he was struck and began to fall to the ground with smoke coming from his wings.

" _Charizard has been hit by a super effective attack! This is really bad for Ash!"_

"Charizard charge up another dragon claw and prepare to pull up!" Ash ordered with a serious face as Charizard's eyes widened. Ash then narrowed his eyes to see Charizard pull up with his green claws crossed in front of him in the direction of Zapdos.

"Dodge it!" Hunter called out while extending his arm. Zapdos got to work fast and began to fly around Charizard, but Ash would not let up with this.

"Charizard concentrate and hit to your right!" Ash exclaimed through the cheering. Charizard stopped moving and only flapped his wings as he then saw something glint from the sun above, with this he turned to his right and slashed his blades into the abdomen of Zapdos that was attempting to fly around.

"Dos…" Zapdos cried as he fell to the ground with a slightly dazed look on his face.

Hunter saw this and quickly reached for his belt to grab a pokeball while saying, "Zapdos return!" Everyone then watched as Zapdos got recalled back into his red energy and was shown in the scoreboard outside of the large icon meant for the pokemon that are in use. Hunter then put the pokeball back in his belt as he watched Charizard fall back to be in front of Ash with a large battle cry. Hunter then grabbed another pokeball from his belt and threw it outwards. "Come on out Electivire!"

"Vire!" Electivire chanted as he fell in front of Hunter with his knee down on the rocky arena while looking up at Charizard. "ELECTIVIRE!" Electivire grunted as he began to charge up electricity by extending his arm and moving then in circular motion.

" _And Hunter performs a substitution. Now it is Electivire that is battling, the advantage is still going to Hunter and Electivire!"_

The crowd cheered as Ash then made the first move, "That does not matter!" Ash then narrowed his eyes as he crossed his fist in front of his face. "Use flare blitz!" Charizard got to work as he made himself glow a blue fire aura and then make himself charge Electivire by flapping his wings and gaining speed from flying in the air.

"Use thunderpunch!" Hunter retaliated by putting his hand in front of his face. Hunter then witnessed as Electivire began to charge up electricity on his fists before running towards the large flying type that was in front of him.

"VIRE!"

"GRUAW!" The gap then closed on a stalemate of a large explosion that was bound to happen. The two attacks began to make sparks fly out in all directions before causing a giant vortex of fire and electricity to spark out in all directions, suddenly, Charizard and Electivire both fell back to be in front of their trainers with electricity surging through them as the shockwave made both trainer's clothes ruffle through the air.

" _What an amazing collision between thunder punch and flare blitz! I have never seen anything like it before!_

Ash gritted his teeth as he looked up at the sky and noticed that Charizard was getting very tired from the constant collisions of super effective hits, so he decided that he would finish things right here: "Charizard use dragon claw!"

"Gruaw!" Charizard shouted as he made his claws glow green and lengthen as they then went straight in the direction of Electivire who had his two electric tails behind him suspended helplessly in the air.

Hunter then smirked as he pumped his fists, "This is it, Electivire grab Charizard in your tails!" Electivire swung his tails around and with a swift motion managed to whip them around the two arms that Charizard was about to slash Electivire with. Charizard then made his claws retract in panic as he tried to pull away and away.

Ash noticed as Hunter was smiling and knew what was coming, "Charizard pull yourself out of there quick!"

"Gruaw!" Charizard shouted as he began to ruffle and move around to attempt and make Electivire let go. Electivire swung around and around and hit the rocky ground a couple of times, but the electric tails would not let go despite all of Ash's efforts to release Charizard.

"Hey Ash, how do you like this? Use THUNDER!" Hunter shouted with a victorious voice as Electivire began to move his arms in circular motion, gathering electricity. Then Electivire made his electricity crackle on the surface of the electric type's skin and begin to electrocute Charizard.

"VIIIIIIIIIIRRRRRRRRREEEEE!" Electivire screeched as he made his electricity consume Charizard without stopping. Charizard grunted in pain as he fell to his knees and tried to move around the best he could, but there was no way that the thunder would be stopped.

" _Charizard is being staggered! Thunder is being effective on Charizard!"_

"Pikachu pika!"

"Charizard!" Ash's voice cried with a panicked voice as Charizard's eyes shot open and began to make his wings flap into the air. Charizard managed to then swing around Electivire into the air above him as Charizard then fell on the ground barely able to get up as electricity surged through him.

"Use thunderpunch!" Hunter called out as Electivire charged up his fist with electricity and began to fall down towards Charizard. Ash watched in awe as the electric punch struck Charizard right on the top of the head and caused dust to pick up around Charizard. When the dust cleared, Charizard was on the ground unconscious thus attracting the cheers of the stands.

"Charizard is unable to battle, Electivire wins!" The referee declared as the scoreboard darkened Charizard's icon.

" _And for the first time in this tournament, Charizard has gone down to the power of both Electivire and Zapdos!"_

Ash sighed as he pulled out Charizard's pokeball and recalled Charizard back into his pokeball. "You were great Charizard, take a good rest," Ash said as he then put Charizard's pokeball back on his belt. Ash then noticed as Hunter also recalled back Electivire to its pokeball.

 **At the stands:**

"Oh man, Charizard lost," Bonnie sighed as she reclined back in her seat with a sad expression on her face.

"It seems like Hunter has been trying to use two pokemon to knock down one of Ash's maybe that is his strategy," Clemont replied with a hand on his chin.

"I think that the only way out of this is to successfully tire out Hunter's pokemon," Brock implied as he then looked towards Calem who also had a pensive hand on his chin.

Calem turned to Brock and nodded, "There has to be a way for Hunter's pokemon to be defeated, it might take a lot of resistance." At this Shauna nodded as Tierno crossed his arms in worry along with Trevor.

"I still believe Ash will win, something about him is impossible to imitate," Serena said as she gripped her ribbon with more intensity.

Leaf on the other side of the stadium was smiling as she pumped her fist and said, "Yes! He made it past Charizard!"

Night chuckled next to her, but then Night's eyes rested on Ash, who seemed to have his attention on the scoreboard. It was as if Ash knew something was up with the way Hunter was battling.

 **At the battle:**

"Go Tyranitar!" Hunter shouted as he then threw a pokeball that caused the large rock and dark type pokemon to appear in front of Ash, which then whipped up some dust around the rocks and ended up making a sandstorm appear throughout the stadium. Hunter smirked at this as Ash threw his own pokeball.

"Greninja I am counting on you!" Ash chanted as he threw his pokeball out to reveal the blue blurb of the ninja frog appear in front of him with crossed arms.

" _And this is a battle of Greninja and Tyranitar! This is going to be so intense, speed against power!"_

"Alright, start this off by using stealth rocks!" Hunter chanted as he saw Tyranitar let out a large cry before then making a lot of rocks disperse among the field and beginning to coat the rocky field.

Ash gritted his teeth as he saw this and muttered under his breath as he saw the sandstorm consuming his visok in front of him, "There has to be a way to get rid of this sandstorm… That's it!" Ash then looked onward into the sandstorm and said, "Greninja can you hear me?"

"Gren!" Greninja nodded back as Ash then said the rest of the instructions.

"Use water shuriken all over the battlefield! It should clear off the sand!" Ash said with a victory tone. Greninja nodded and got to work as he reached for his shuriken markings and gathered a couple of shurikens that he launched at the ground. The blue disks dispersed among the ground and caused some blue watery explosions that made the sandstorm disperse and get completely eliminated from any sort of flying debris. Ash then narrowed his eyes as he watched how the green armored pseudo legendary was looking around in confusion like a sitting duck. This made Ash make his next move to a Greninja that was in front of him with his arms at his sides, "Greninja use aqua blade, let's go!"

" _And Greninja's amazing strategy has lead to the entire sandstorm being cancelled off! Amazing!"_

"Gren!" Greninja whispered as he then made the dark blue kunai appear on his right hand. Greninja then jumped into the air and began to swing around the blade as he was falling towards Tyranitar on the other side of the arena. "NINJA!"

"Use crunch and stop it!" Hunter responded as the armored pokemon made himself grow a pair of mandibles before chomping them into Greninja's water blade. Tyranitar then whipped a slightly panicked water and dark ninja around before letting go of his attack and making Greninja fall in front of Ash with one hand on the rocks while slightly sliding back. Hunter then put his hand out and smirked as he then began to look at Greninja, "Take this Ash, use stone edge!"

"RRRRAAAWWWRRR!" Tyranitar cried as he slammed his fist into the ground and began to cause blue rocks to shoot out of the ground in the direction of Greninja.

"Dodge it!" Ash shouted as he saw the attack. At this Ash watched as Greninja jumped into the air to avoid the barrage of rocks as Ash then put his hands out. "Water shuriken once more!"

"Gren… NINJA!" Greninja shouted as he made his water disks launch of easily in the direction of Tyranitar. Tyranitar put his hand in front of his face as he took the hits from the numerous water projected that were shot, but the attacks still made decent amounts of damage as Tyranitar fell in front of Hunter with a slightly amused look for the front ninja pokemon.

" _And Ash hits another water shuriken, but this time of Tyranitar instead of the rocky field!"_

"Tyranitar are you alright?"

"Rawr!"

"Alright then, good job for now, return!" Hunter said as he recalled his Tyranitar back into his pokeball. Hunter then pulled out another pokeball and smiled as he threw this one out, "Go Blaziken!" The pokeball opened in the air and threw it a flashing light materialized into a fire and fighting chicken based pokemon that stood there with fire streaking down the limbs.

" _And another switch from Hunter! Is this possibly his strategy?"_

"Ziken!" Blaziken called out with a strong volume as Ash and Greninja looked amused.

"So a Blaziken huh?" Ash then looked at Greninja, "Are you ready for this?"

"Ninja!" Greninja nodded with a smile under his tongue as Ash then looked up and to his right to see the illuminated scoreboard that had the sun's reflection on it. Ash then looked at the progression of the battle:

 **Ash:** _Charizard_ (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) **Greninja**

 **Hunter:** (pokeball) (pokeball) Zapdos Electivire Tyranitar **Blaziken**

Ash decided to ignore the fact that he had less pokemon than Hunter while then pumping his fist, "Greninja run towards Blaziken!"

"Gren!" Greninja began as he leaned forward with his arms behind him and began to spring towards the fire type that was in front of him. Ash narrowed his eyes as he watched Greninja begin to make his way closed to Blaziken. Ash then clenched his fists as he waited patiently for the right time to strike. Continuously every second telling himself that he would attack once Hunter makes a move.

" _Ash is just going to play the bait game here! I am wondering what Ash has planned for Greninja!"_

"If he's coming right for us, then we will just attack!" Hunter declared as he made a cross in front of his face. "Use blaze kick!" At the last part Hunter retracted his leg and shot it outward as in doing a roundhouse kick in mid air. Blaziken ignited himself and Ash witnessed how the fire and fighting type jumped into the air and aimed right at Greninja with a combusted leg.

"ZIKEN!" Blaziken cried as he began to close in his distance on the rocky ground and Greninja. Ash knew he had little time to react as the attack was eminent and from watching how fast Blaziken was, Ash knew that he had to counter the attack instead of attempting to prevent it.

"Greninja use aerial ace!" Ash exclaimed as he pumped his fists in front of him. Greninja looked up on the falling Blaziken and saw the incoming attack glowing brightly in the air as it approached. With a quick motion Greninja made his right leg glow white with aerobatic power and then kicked off from the ground with his left foot. With that he then extended his right foot and met the blaze kick head on. Ash noticed how when the attacks collided, it caused a stalemate in which there were sparks flying. Through this, he knew he would have to put all of his faith in Greninja if he was to pull through. "Don't give up Greninja! Use aerial ace with your free leg!"

"GREN!" Greninja charged up as he made his left leg glow white as well. "NINJA!" Greninja shouted as he then slammed his other leg into the abdomen of Blaziken which then caused a shockwave to ripple through the rocky arena as the two pokemon fell in front of their trainers on both feet with one hand on the ground to prevent from sliding to far back.

" _And both pokemon show their determination in battle which clearly ended in a good hit for Ash, but it seems that both pokemon can still go on!"_

"Jump into the air Greninja!" Ash ordered. Greninja instantly jumped up and gained a lot of air from one jump, it was clearly something that Hunter was not expecting as he flinched a little as he saw the action that was being taken.

"Blaziken use flamethrower!" Hunter quickly commanded with his fist out in the air.

"ZIKEN!" Blaziken exclaimed as he then charged up all of his power and expelled it in a jet beam of flames that streaked across the air smoothly and accurately about to slam into Greninja that was overhead.

Ash watched this with narrowed eyes as he then pumped one fist and then crossed his arm down in the direction of the ground, "Use aqua blade!"

"Gren…." Greninja grunted as he made his dark blue kunai blades show up in front of him as he then put the blades in front of his arm. "NINJA!" Greninja shouted in an aquatic voice as he began to work his way through the fire beam by slicing through with the water blades in the direction of Blaziken. Blaziken's eyes gleamed a little as the two blades sliced right through his chest leaving a long navy blue shadow of the path of the aqua blades as Greninja stood behind Blaziken while making his aquatic blades turn into water and fall fluidly to the rocky ground. Greninja then crossed his arms as he said: "Ninja…"

"BLAZIKEN!" Blaziken grunted in pain as he began to feel the after effect of the aqua blade and had an explosion envelop him from all around.

" _Amazing! Greninja's aqua blade attack is doing its effects on Blaziken!"_

"Blaziken no!" Hunter shouted in panic as he witnessed Blaziken get back up with a corrupt pose while panting heavily. "Blaziken can you still go on?" Hunter asked with a concerned expression.

"Ziken…" Blaziken nodded weakly as he then turned towards the frog ninja pokemon in front of him and then put his arms out in a combative stance.

"Alright then!" Hunter shouted as he then put his arms out, "Use flamethrower one more time!"

"Double team!"

"ZIKEN!" Blaziken cried as he shot the beam of flames at the Greninja that was in front of him standing still. Blaziken made his barrage of hell begin to approach Greninja, but then the water and dark type made a cross with his arms in front of his face and began to split into many copies of himself.

"Gren… Gren… Gren…" Greninja said as he split off into many copies that covered the rocky arena. Blaziken maintained his fire concentrated at the center, but at the command of Hunter, he made all of the copies begin to disappear by aiming the flamethrower at the copies that were blinking slightly.

"Where is Greninja?" Hunter asked in a worryingly tone as he noticed that the copies were all gone. Hunter then noticed that Ash was smirking at the other side of the battlefield as his scarf slightly waved at a small gust of wind. Ash then crossed his arms as a small amount of rocks kicked up around the arena in a fast motion that turned Blaziken and Hunter's attention to the sudden sightings.

"NOW!" Ash shouted with confidence while pumping both of his fists.

"GREN GREN GREN GRENINJA!" Greninja cried as he then began to run around Blaziken with great amounts of power and speed while swiftly throwing ninja stars made of water at the opponent. Hunter's eyes widened as he witnessed how Greninja was moving around Blaziken with great amounts of speed while clearly overwhelming the chicken like pokemon.

" _Greninja has just locked up Blaziken! What can Hunter even do in this situation?"_

"Blaziken return!" Hunter suddenly called out as he recalled Blaziken back to his pokeball. Greninja stopped in front of Ash panting hard as Hunter then reached into his belt and pulled out another pokeball while throwing it out with great power. "Let's go Feraligatr!" Hunter called out as when the pokeball opened it revealed a large jawed alligator like pokemon that was clearly a water type. Ash then took a closer look to see that Feraligatr was a quiet pokemon that seemed to have a slick nature. The scoreboard updated again along with the crowd cheering more violently than ever for the new battle that is about to unfold.

" _And Hunter makes another substitution, this time into a Feraligatr!"_

"Greninja, let's go at this with caution," Ash said as the frog ninja pokemon in front of him turned to the raven haired trainer and nodded. Ash then smiled as he looked down and put a hand on his cap. "You know Hunter, I am reading very well your strategy."

"Huh?" Hunter slightly gasped at this as Ash then had a little bit of wind blow through him and move his scarf.

"Switch all you want Hunter, if it is the plan you are going for, then do it," Ash responded as he then looked up and smirked, "But keep in mind that I am the one that will be taking this win!" Ash then looked at Greninja and smiled, "Greninja, we are going for this together right?"

"Ninja!" Greninja replied with a fist pump.

"Alright then!" Ash shouted as he put out his fist. "Start this off with water shuriken!"

"Gren!" Greninja reached for the shuriken markings on his legs before then clapping his hands together with the water energy and then launching the attack at the water type in front of him. Hunter watched carefully as he then thought out of a plan to counter the water shuriken.

"Crunch! Crush it with your jaw!"

"FERA!" Feraligatr cried as he aligned his jaw with the shuriken while making the dark mandibles appear. Feraligatr then cut down on the shuriken and that caused it to explode in front of his face thus making a small amount of smoke consume him that instantly faded. "Ligatr," Feraligatr smiled said with an amused tone towards Greninja.

" _Using crunch Feraligatr was able to completely stop water shuriken from getting anywhere! Amazing!"_

"Now Feraligatr use brick break!" Hunter exclaimed as he put his fist out. Feraligatr quickly made his fist glow white and then he began to run in the direction of Greninja.

"Counter it with aqua blade!" Ash retaliated with his hand to the side. Greninja summoned his dark blue blades and then began to run with great speed in the direction of Feraligatr. Feraligatr downcut as Greninja performed an uppercut at the direction of the brick break. The two attacks stayed in a stalemate for a second before the brick break was able to push down Greninja. "Greninja!" Ash shouted with worry at seeing how the frog ninja pokemon's head slammed into the rocky ground. Ash heard as the cheers got louder to egg on the fight. "Greninja get out of there!" Greninja slowly tried to get up, but then he sank to his knees in pain, it was clear that battling three pokemon was taking its toll on the water and dark type.

" _Oh no! Greninja seems to be tired from the constant battling!"_

"Use ice punch!" Hunter shouted.

"LIGATR!" Feraligatr exclaimed as the alligator water type made his freezing fist and then slammed it right into the abdomen on Greninja. Greninja crossed his arms in front of him, but as he got hit, the ice began to freeze over Greninja's body thus making the attack leave Greninja in a vulnerable position to which it was impossible to move. Ash's eyes widened at this as then gritted his teeth.

" _Greninja has been frozen solid! This is bad news for Ash!"_

"Finish it off with brick break!" Hunter ordered as he put a hand out with two fingers pointed forward.

"Fera… LIGATR!" Feraligatr cried as he made his white downcut shatter all of the ice with a swift move that left Ash and Pikachu's mouth hanging. When Greninja was shown, Greninja fell to the ground unconscious from the super effective attack.

"Greninja is unable to battle," The referee declared as Hunter was shown with a pumped fist. "Feraligatr wins!"

" _And Feraligatr pulls off quite an amazing win on Greninja! What will Ash do now that he is down two pokemon?"_

"LIGATR!" The water type starter from Johto shouted as he then was seen turning into red energy meaning that Hunter was recalling him.

"Greninja return," Ash said as he recalled his frog ninja pokemon. "You did a good job, you managed to weaken Hunter's pokemon some more." To this Greninja's pokeball gave a little shake to which Ash smiled.

 **At the stands:**

"YES! Greninja is down!" Leaf celebrated as she grabbed Jolteon from Night's lap and began to hug the spiky electric type with a lot of strength that left Jolteon becoming cyanotic from the lack of oxygen. "Hunter is going to win! He will!"

"Hunter is doing well to have the lead, but I would not always claim victory until the battle is finished," Night replied as he put a hand on his chin and looked at Ash. "Something about Ash's pokemon is very unique about him, If I were Hunter I would definitely be careful."

"So Greninja went down," Calem muttered with slight disappointment. He had been really excited to see that Greninja would win Ash some battles, but it seems like Greninja was nothing more than just a fall guy like Charizard: Something that Trevor was kind of salty about since Calem could see Trevor clenching his fists in worry.

"Ash is in such a bad spot, he is down two pokemon, and not to mention that he is down his mega evolution and…" Brock then looked down at the arena through the cheering crowd and shouted at the top of his lungs. "ASH IT'S TIME TO MAKE A COMEBACK!"

"YEA ASH! ACTUALLY WIN THIS!" Bonnie chanted with Brock trying to make Ash hear those words.

Clemont looked down at the battlefield and narrowed his eyes as his glasses reflected Hunter's figure with Eevee on them, "This trainer is not messing around if he is able to get Ash down two of his strongest pokemon."

Serena looked down at the battle with her fingers ruffling through her ribbon as her eyes glistened in the sunlight above, "Ash…" She muttered as she then flexed her hand a closed it into a fist that applied pressure on the ribbon.

 **At the battle:**

"Hmmm… What do I do now…" Ash asked himself as he looked on at Hunter. Ash then went wide eyed as he then came up with a plan to defeat Hunter's next pokemon. Ash knew it now, he had only four pokemon to which he could use to take down the team that Ash already knew.

"Pikapi!" Ash turned to his right to see Pikachu tugging on his pant leg. "Pika pika!" Pikachu kept smirking with a pumped fist that Ash knew all too well as a sign that said to put him in.

Ash shook his head and patted his friend's head and said, "Don't worry Pikachu, you will get to shine later in the battle, right now I need to find an opening… Also." Ash looked at the field and saw traces of rocks on the ground and then turned to Pikachu and said, "I don't want you to take some damage just by going into battle."

"Pika pikachu…." PIkachu sighed as he lowered his ears and stepped back a little.

Ash looked up at the scoreboard and then looked at Hunter with a smirk. 'So he has a Zapdos, Electivire, Tyranitar, Blaziken, Feraligatr, and Eevee? That is a very strong team, but that means that I will have to give it my all if I want to win!'

"Tyranitar let's go!" Hunter exclaimed as he threw Tyranitar's pokeball back out again. The large pseudo legendary appeared in front of Hunter with a great roar that made a sandstorm whip up once again around the battle field due to sand stream.

Ash knew what he had to go with how, "Go Sceptile!" Ash exclaimed as he reached into his belt and pulled out Sceptile's pokeball.

"TILE!" Sceptile shouted as he entered the battlefield and stood on top of the rocks while chewing on his twig. "Sceptile," Sceptile grunted in pain as he felt a group of a couple stones come out of the ground and pierce him. Ash gritted his teeth at this as he remembered about the stealth rocks, but then he remembered that he needed to battle in the sandstorm, so he then narrowed his eyes as he thought of a strategy.

" _And Ash now goes with Sceptile! But stealth rocks is already causing trouble for Ash, what can he do?"_

The referee then resumed the battle and Hunter took the first move, "Use hyper beam!"

"RAWRRR!" Tyranitar beamed as he shot the dark and draconic beam towards Sceptile. Sceptile bent his legs in preparation of Ash's command as Ash made an easy command that Sceptile would understand at any moment.

"Jump up Sceptile!" Ash exclaimed while putting his hand up into the air. Inside the sandstorm as the beam was coming, Sceptile crouched his legs and jumped into the air. The beam passed right below Sceptile and crashed right in front of Ash. Sceptile though, he reached a really high altitude that allowed Ash to make the move that he needed to. "Use leaf storm on the sand storm and redirect it away from the battlefield!"

"Scep…" Sceptile charged up as he aimed his tail towards the sandstorm below him. "TILE!" Sceptile shot the beam of grassy wind out towards the sandstorm and instantly the vortex began to make a tornado like appearance that caused a wind that shook the trainer's clothing. The leaf storm also picked up the sand as it was then dispersed out towards the direction of Tyranitar.

"Tar!" Tyranitar grunted as he fell on his back from pain due to taking the hit.

" _And Ash not only got rid of the sandstorm, but also used it to attack Tyranitar! Amazing!"_

"We are not finished here," Ash declared as he pumped his fist. "Use leaf blade!" Sceptile then dived in the direction of Tyranitar by making the lateral part of his arms glow two green blades which then crashed right into Tyranitar. The attacker then went back to his trainer as Tyranitar slowly stood back up.

"Stone edge!" Hunter declared as Tyranitar slammed his fist into the ground which then caused the large rock and dark type to send a barrage of light blue rocks in the direction of Sceptile.

"Jump!"

"Tile!" Sceptile cried as he jumped into the air with his hands out in his sides to attempt to get the air advantage on Tyranitar, who completely missed the stone edge earlier because of the way that Sceptile dodged the attack.

"No way…" Hunter gasped as he then put his fist out with a confident pose, "Use your tail!" Tyranitar whirled around his tail to then break apart the light blue stones from the ground and launch shards in the direction of Sceptile.

Sceptile went wide eyed at this and a little shocked as Ash then pumped his fist and shouted the next command, "Charge in with dragon claw!" Sceptile then made his green scaly claws and as the shards came, he hi them away and twisted while making several barrel rolls before then slamming his blades into the top of Tyranitar's head to which Sceptile then fell back into the air in the direction of Ash. Ash then saw as Tyranitar lost his balance and looked dazed from the previous attack, so through the roaring crowd he put his arm in the ground and shouted. "FRENZY PLANT!"

"Tile!" Sceptile exclaimed as he charged up the attack. Sceptile then reeled back his fist: "SCEPTILE!" Sceptile exclaimed as he fell down on the rocky ground and instantly punched the ground with all of his might. Sceptile then watched as his monstrous plants veered out of the ground and then constricted Tyranitar, shocking Hunter as Ash smirked from the amazing damage that it should have done as then an explosion made a shock wave blast through the arena making Hunter shield his face as Ash did not flinch at all. The plants then retreated back to the ground and the result was an unconscious Tyranitar.

"Tyranitar is unable to battle," the referee then put his hand out to Sceptile and said. "This means that Sceptile wins!" at the same time Tyranitar was darkened down at the scoreboard and Hunter recalled his pokemon.

" _That gargantuan finish has just put Ash's name on the board, this is beginning to get more heated!"_

"YES!" Ash shouted as he pumped his fist along with Sceptile. Ash finally got the need he needed and Sceptile had just put him on the scoreboard. Ash then smirked, "Alright, now it is my turn to make a comeback!"

"Not gonna happen," Hunter declared as he threw out a pokeball. "Let's go Blaziken!" The fire chicken fell in front of Sceptile and gave a large battle cry which made Ash flinch a little and look up at Blaziken, who now had a red aura surround him meaning that blaze had kicked in. It was definitely going to go in stronger for round two, specially after his battle with Greninja.

 **At the stands:**

"Alright, Ash took one down, that is good," Brock stated as he scratched his chin. "But he is still at a disadvantage with only four pokemon compared to the five that Hunter still has."

"Ash will win, I know it," Serena stated as he looked down and noticed as Sceptile took a super powered flamethrower head on, but was able to cut through with leaf blade. Serena then slightly flinched as she noticed that Sceptile began to glow red as in on fire and fell to his knees with great pain."

" _And it seems that Sceptile has been burned! This may seem bad for Ash!"_

Serena gripped her ribbon harder as she saw this and then noticed as blaziken kicked Sceptile in the abdomen with a blaze kick. Serena heard as the cheers got louder and louder to the battle as she saw the referee then raise his hand and declare Sceptile unable to battle.

" _And Ash is now down to his last three pokemon! Hunter will be at a large advantage, specially after this field change!"_

Serena watched as Ash recalled his Sceptile into red energy that then went back into the pokeball. After that, Serena watched as Ash whispered something into the pokeball to then put it on his belt. Serena then saw as Hunter also recalled his Blaziken back into his pokeball.

"This is bad, Ash is now down to three pokemon," Shaun said as Tierno and Trevor both looked stressed out. Calem clenched his fists and Clemont looked onto the field as it descended back down below the trainer platforms with a glare on his glasses.

" _Now is the time for a field change! What field will we get next?"_

"I think Ash has a strategy now, he knows all of Hunter's team… But it would take a lot of effort to get there," Clemont said with a serious tone. "Be careful Ash," Is the next thing that Clemont muttered under his breath.

 **At the battle:**

Ash looked up at the scoreboard and noticed him being down three pokemon to five. Ash then looked at Pikachu who also had a worried look on his face. "Pikachu relax, I think I can do this."

"Pika?" Pikachu asked at his trainers bold words.

The crowd the cheered once more as Ash's attention was brought back to the new field that came up. It was a grassy field and Ash knew that it would be hard, but it was possible.

"So Ash," Hunter said with a smirk as he looked at Ash. "You liking my power right now?" Hunter then threw a pokeball out into the field while saying: "Go Electivire!"

"VIRE!" Electivire shouted as he landed on the grassy field and pumped and charged up electricity with his two tails. "ELECTIVIRE!" Electivire then shouted as he made a shockwave of electricity disperse throughout the hexagonal stadium, thus making the lights and scoreboard flicker a little before staying back on. At this the stadium cheered with excitement that could highlight how much the league was awaiting for this challenge.

Ash did not flinch as he saw this, but he narrowed his eyes as he said the next part, "My comeback starts now!" Ash then reached into his belt and picked the pokeball that he was meaning to choose and threw it towards the field. "I CHOOSE YOU!"

 **A/N: Next chapter will conclude this battle, but man, how will Ash pull himself out of this hole? I did not really need to put Blaziken against Sceptile in detail because it was a battle that was meant to go one sided towards Sceptile…**

 **Anyways, the fate of this battle of top 16 will be revealed next chapter where Ash does his hardest to make a comeback… But how will he do it without his aces that have special abilities? Will he even be able to become victorious? These answers will be answered in the next chapter!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **I know it has been a long time since my last update and I apologize again for being such a scum. Anyways, I will try to update the next chapter soon so that you guys can see what happens in Ash vs Hunter.**


	40. Chapter 40

**Melemele Island- Alola:**

Hau was running home with his eyes headed towards home. He was running through the sandy beach on his way towards the professor's lab with great excitement and a hand in his pocket. He felt the check in his pocket, what would finally be used to save Lillie. "Just a little more," Hau gasped as he reached the entrance of a small shack in the middle of the grass. Hau burst in through the door with a excitement as he shouted: "Professor Kukui!"

Tending to a small rocky dog like pokemon, Hau saw a man with a lab coat and a pair of glasses. He had slightly tanned skin and his lab coat was his only top on. He turned around and smiled when he saw who it was, "Hau, nice to see you again," the man named Kukui said.

"Ruff! Rockruff!" The small pokemon said as he pounced on Hau and gave him a lick. Hau laughed a little at this as Hau then called out the pokemon by its name.

"Rockruff, you are still awesome," Hau said as he then noticed Kukui with his mouth agape at Hau's attitude. Hau then grew a serious face, "Professor, can I see Lillie?"

"She has not changed since last time," Kukui started with a sigh as he then signaled for Hau to follow him up towards the ladder that lead to Lillie's room. "Look Hau, I am sorry about what happened at the Kalo League. I know you worked so hard."

"Let's not talk about that, I just want to see my sister again," Hau said. At this Kukui nodded and the two ascended the steps of the ladder to then see a small room with bookshelves lining the walls. There was also a bean bag chair that seemed to be a place for someone to read their books in. Lastly, Hau took a glance towards the left and saw it:

There was a bed with light blue covers. Next to the bed was a machine that was making sounds of inhaling air and exhaling air along with a bag. Hau then turned to the tubes that came off the machine to notice they lead down the mouth of a young girl who was in a blue and white dress while the bag had another tube that went into the arm of the girl. Hau looked at her carefully and gasped as he saw the girl. She had pale skin, but her hair was pale blonde with a icy blue tint to it, also it was cut short, to be around shoulder length. Hau then looked closer and noticed that her eyes were closed as her delicate chest moved up and down to the rhythm of the machine. It was obviously a ventilator keeping the girl alive.

"Glaceon…" a female Glaceon that was next to the bed said with a sad smile as she looked at the girl and put her cold body next to the warm girl. The pink was still in the girl's cheeks which meant that there was still life, but there was no consciousness.

"Lilligant," a female flower grass type pokemon came by with a bowl of water in between her hands with a wash cloth. Lilligant then draped the wash cloth in water and began brushing the face of the girl, making sure she cleaned her face all thoroughly.

Hau looked at Professor Kukui and with a sad expression asked, "Why is Lillie… Blue?"

Professor Kukui sighed and looked at Hau before he spoke up, "I don't exactly know, it probably has to do something with a decreased amount of oxygen… Anyways, we had to cut her ponytail off because it could interfere with the ventilation machine. Other than that, Glaceon has been really worried and Lilligant has kept Lillie hydrated by giving her water and occasionally cleaning her face off like she is doing now. That is why since the last time you saw Lillie, her lips and skin have stayed soft. Other than that, she has changed a lot."

"Professor Kukui," Hau began getting the attention of the professor. "Even though Lillie may not be the same as before, I think we all want her back… For that," Hau then looked at Professor Kukui and said, "I want to go ahead and do the surgery."

"But Hau, what about the costs?" Professor Kukui implied with a sad smile. "I know you tried your hardest, but you did not win what was necessary to save Lillie, what can we do?"

Hau just checked a little and then went to be next to Lillie. Hau then looked at the girl in front of him along with the flower bipedal pokemon and the ice type Eeveelution. Hau then smiled as he reached into his pocket and pulled out the check, "I may not have won my way, but someone special managed to help me…" Hau said as he felt a huge weight off his shoulders.

"Hau, is that…"

"Yes, let's get everyone ready for Lillie's return," Hau said turning back towards the professor with a smile on his face. Professor Kukui said nothing as he saw Hau put the check back in his pocket and then turn back towards the ladder and descended it. "I am going to go see the others and see how they are doing," Hau said as he then walked out the door and looked out into the beach. Hunter then went behind the shack and preceded to go due west towards the outskirts of Hau'oli city. As Hau then saw to his right a large building with a grand entrance. There was a amounts of battlefields at the front of the place and a race track for Tauros. Hau then preceded to enter the building to enter a classroom that had an open window that held a view of the beach. Hau shifted his gaze to the right to then be meet with a girl that had a Popplio in her hands. "Lana!" Hau shouted with excitement seeing the girl.

"Hau! No way!" Lana said as she ran towards Hau. Hau looked at the girl and noticed that she had blue hair that was held back by a brown hair rod with a blue and white outfit. She also had dark blue eyes with pale skin, but some freckles on her face. On her hands, Popplio was delighted with joy as she also noticed Hau.

"Waht is with all of the commotion here?" a boy said as he walked up behind Hau. "NO WAY HAU!" The boy screeched as he pounced on top of Hau with delight. "It has been so long!"

"I know Sophocles," Hau said as he saw the boy with a very chubby appearance. He also had orange hair with a white shirt that had a video game controller on it. Hau also noted that there was a small electric scarf around his neck that seemed to round out the electric trial captain's look. "Nice to see you again," Hau finished while putting his hands behind his head.

"Hau, it's great to see you back," Kiawe said as he entered through the door. "I personally was not expecting you to be acting like the Hau we all know."

"Oh yea," Hau said to the others as he was reaching to his pocket to pull something out. "About that…"

"Hau.. Is that you?" A green haired girl with a gray outfit said as she walked in from behind.

"Mallow," Hau said with a slight expression of regret. "Look about the last time we talked…"

"It's ok," Mallow said as everyone's attention went to Hau. "I talked with Ash after the battle you had with him. He said he wanted to know how to make a Malasada." Mallow then giggled, "Did that work out alright?"

"Y-you talked with Ash?" Hau asked nearly stammering through his words. Then Hau just smiled and said, "Yea, he made some Malasadas, but they were not as good as yours." The last part Hau said was through gritted teeth.

"Hau," Mallow then said, "What about Lillie, what are we going to do now?" Mallow asked with a saddened face. Everyone else turned to see Mallow and also gave sad expressions as they also knew about Hau's defeat. Mallow then flinched as she felt Hau put a hand on her shoulder. Mallow looked up with a slight tint of red on her cheeks to see Hau pumping his fist on his other hand.

"What are you talking about 'what do we do now', isn't the answer obvious?" Hau said the last part with a bright smile as he then reached into his pocket and pulled out the check so that everyone could get an eyeful of what Hau had in his hands. "Thanks to someone special, we are going to save Lillie. That is what we are going to do!"

At this everyone in the room went wide eyed with glimmers of hope in their eyes as they saw the meaning behind the check. It did not matter that Hau lost anymore, it was evident that Lillie would be saved if they acted now.

 **A/N: Alright, people are already asking yourselves questions about what is medically wrong with Lillie… I actually don't know even though I am interested in the field myself… I could say she is cyanotic, but her skin is not blue, it is just her hair. Anyways, her appearance is mostly just to fit her role as a character and because I am hinting towards something…**

 **Anyways, I have nothing else to say, but the chapter will decide what happens between Ash and Hunter. This is the only chance Ash has to turn things around, let's see what happens.**

 **Also, before I go! If you made it this far, thank you. Writing 40 chapters is a lot of work so I thank you for enjoying it up to this point!**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or Courtesy Call**

Chapter 40- An impossible comeback!

 **At the battle:**

Ash looked up at the scoreboard and noticed him being down three pokemon to five. Ash then looked at Pikachu who also had a worried look on his face. "Pikachu relax, I think I can do this."

"Pika?" Pikachu asked at his trainers bold words.

The crowd the cheered once more as Ash's attention was brought back to the new field that came up. It was a grassy field and Ash knew that it would be hard, but it was possible.

"So Ash," Hunter said with a smirk as he looked at Ash. "You liking my power right now?" Hunter then threw a pokeball out into the field while saying: "Go Electivire!"

"VIRE!" Electivire shouted as he landed on the grassy field and pumped and charged up electricity with his two tails. "ELECTIVIRE!" Electivire then shouted as he made a shockwave of electricity disperse throughout the hexagonal stadium, thus making the lights and scoreboard flicker a little before staying back on. At this the stadium cheered with excitement that could highlight how much the league was awaiting for this challenge.

Ash did not flinch as he saw this, but he narrowed his eyes as he said the next part, "My comeback starts now!" Ash then reached into his belt and picked the pokeball that he was meaning to choose and threw it towards the field. "I CHOOSE YOU!"

"GOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Goodra shouted as landed on the ground with a large thud. "Goodra!" Goodra shouted as he curved back his hands and stood in a menacing position across from the electric type.

" _And we have Goodra against Electivire! This will be a battle played out in a grassy battlefield!"_

The crowd cheered as Ash then put his hands out to the signal of the referee to resume battling. "Goodra, start this off with thunder!" Goodra was quick to his trainer's orders as he made himself glow in crackling electricity before launching the beam right at Electivire through the crackling ground.

"Take the hit Electivire!" Hunter countered. The electricity smashed into Electivire, but instead of taking damage, Electivire began to reel his hands around and around as the electricity built up inside of Electivire tails. At this Ash flinched and gritted his teeth. "Now shock him with your thunder!"

"VIRE!" Electivire exclaimed as he then charged up the electricity and shot it right at Goodra. Goodra was not able to dodge due to being a slow pokemon, but Goodra got hit with the attack this causing Goodra to fall to the ground with electricity around him.

"Ugh no way!" Ash said with great amounts of frustration as he noticed Goodra barely able to move.

" _And Goodra has been paralyzed! Not to mention that Goodra's thunder was ineffective due to Electivire's motor drive!"_

"Goodra, are you alright?" Ash asked. Goodra closed one eye as the electricity crackled around him. "Alright then, use rain dance!" Goodra looked up at the sky and made a large battlecry which immediately made the entire air above the grass turn to dark clouds which slowly made water begin to pour down. Ash then looked forward and noticed that Electivire was then charging up electricity again so he looked at Goodra and said, "Keep your head up and make sure that Electivire's attack gets well absorbed as you use bide."

"Goo!" Goodra said back as he nodded. The sparks around the slimy dragon began to disappear as the rain made contact with Goodra and that seemed to make Ash relieved.

" _The rain has cured Goodra's paralysis, but will Goodra still be able to land a hit on Electivire?"_

"The paralysis does not matter anymore to us, we will just use your own rain to our advantage," Hunter declared as he pumped his fist. Hunter then put his hand out to the side as he brought his fist out as if he was punching the air. "Electivire use thunder with all of your power!"

Ash narrowed his eyes as he watched Electivire charge up the electricity above him and then begin to aim it towards Goodra. The electricity then struck the ground and went around Goodra before then piercing right into the pure dragon type. "Goodra remember what I said!" Ash saw Goodra nod as a small explosion enveloped around Goodra. Ash then smirked as the smoke cleared to reveal that Goodra was still standing with a menacing looking face and a blood red aura around him. "LET IT RIP!" Ash exclaimed as he put his fist into the rainy sky.

Goodra's green eyes gleamed with power as zooming out revealed the dragon forming a large white ball of energy in front of him before shooting it right out towards Electivire. It streaked across the grass and then the white ray of pure energy consumed Electivire. The electric type flinched as the entire air around him seemed to explode. The explosion sent a shockwave that made Ash's scarf wave, but was so close to hunter that he had to cover his eyes. "Electivire!" Hunter shouted in panic as he then looked back up to see the smoke clearing.

" _And Ash's counter attack has done a great deal of damage to Electivire, what will happen now?"_

"Electi… Vire…" Electivire grunted as he stood back up in front of Goodra with great power. "VIRE!" Electivire shouted with intensity as he made his entire body surge in electricity that sent arcing sounds throughout his tails as a "Jacob's Ladder" was seen arcing up the tails. Ash smirked at this as he then spoke up.

"I have never battled someone as capable as you Hunter," Ash said with a smile. "I am very impressed at how strong you are… But I will take this match, there is no way I can lose now!" Ash then pumped his fists as he then punched the trainer box below him. "Goodra use thunder and surround Electivire!"

"GOOOO!" Goodra shouted as he made the electricity he had stored in him reach towards the raining sky and then made the electricity strike the ground around Electivire thus causing a ring around the electric type.

"My electricity will never be shaken off," Ash said with a smirk as he then clapped his hands together. "Make the ground shatter Goodra!" Goodra then focused his electricity and bumped up the voltage.

"Vire…" Electivire flinched as he saw this and Hunter went wide eyed.

"Electivire get out of there!" Hunter panicked as he saw the attack coming. The air around Electivire once again exploded and Hunter went wide eyed as he noticed the electricity had not disappeared yet, but was sent crackling through the stadium continuously arcing the scoreboard to flicker from time to time. Electivire then slumped to the ground as the smoke cleared. Hunter then noticed that Electivire could still keep going as he noticed that Electivire's eyes were gleaming red with a red that he had never seen before. "Alright Electivire, use your faster speed and use thunder punch!" Electivire began to run through the grass with a great amount of speed as he then reeled back his fist and made it spark in yellow electricity. Just then Electivire was right in front of Goodra at which Goodra's eyes went wide at seeing Electivire at such close proximity.

Ash was calm though as he then put his fist out in front of him. "Stop him with your ears!"

"Dra!" Goodra shouted as he made his extendable ears swing around and grip Electivire which then caused the electric type's sparkling fist to stop crackling.

"Quick Electivire wrap your tails around him!" Hunter retaliated seeing the potential risk. At this point, both pokemon were secured to each other with barely any moving room. Both trainers gritted their teeth in a stressed out motion as they both pumped their fists:

"USE THUNDER/USE BIDE!"

Electivire struck first as he began to shock Goodra with the power that was being delivered in the shock. It was evident that the rain pouring around the two pokemon was amplifying the power of the electricity as the energy surged from one pokemon to the other. Goodra though, he made his aura grow more and more deadly and Ash noticed this as his chance to finally hit Electivire with what he had. "Goodra!" Goodra instantly opened his awareness to Ash as he forgot the pain that he was going through. "Swing Electivire around and throw him above you, then let go of the bide!"

"Dra!" Goodra shouted as he then swung Electivire around, but instead of being able to launch him into the air, Goodra fell on his back. Ash went wide eyed as he saws this because it was that Electivire was still holding on well.

"Goodra just let it go!"

"GOOOOOOO! DRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Goodra finally screeched as he made the beam appear and then smash into the abdomen of Electivire which caused the energy to carry Electivire from Goodra and up into the sky into the raining clouds. Goodra took deep breaths as he watched from his back up at the clouds that were pouring water on him to then see the clouds above him explode in fire. Everyone in the stadium remained silent as they then watched Electivire fall from the clouds and land head first on the ground with a thud. It was clear at that moment that Electivire had been knocked out when he hit the ground.

"Electivire is unable to battle, which means hat Goodra wins!" the referee announced as he held up the flags. Hunter silently recalled Electivire back to his pokeball as Goodra then stood back up and looked back at Ash.

"Alright Goodra! Well done!" Ash called out as he pumped his fist at the large slimy dragon.

"Dra!" Goodra smiled as he then turned back towards the grassy field that had water falling on him constantly supporting the purple dragon.

" _And Goodra is able to defeat Electivire! This has already been taking the turn it needed. Ash only needs one more knock out to be on par with Hunter's battle strategy!"_

 **At the stands:**

"Yes Goodra!" Serena cheered as she stood up from her seat and put a hand over her ribbon along to the clapping crowd to Goodra. "Ash is making a comeback, this is definitely going to be something that Ash will do, I know he will!"

"Ash can't relax still," Clemont implied as the young inventor looked at Brock. "If Ash let's his guard down, this could be serious trouble, especially since Hunter still has that Zapdos and his Eevee."

"Let's not forget that Ash's Goodra is starting to get tired, especially after that battle, will Goodra even be able to stay in for another pokemon?" Brock asked.

Calem then spoke up as well to add onto the conversation, "Still, it did take Hunter two pokemon to knock down Charizard and Sceptile, and with Greninja, it took three. How much stronger can Ash's pokemon be to withstand that?"

"Calem does have a point," Tierno said as he put a hand on his chin. "Hunter seems to be having tired out pokemon while Ash has less. It is a lot better to fight with small numbers and a clean up, but it is also beneficial to have bigger numbers, so maybe it could to either way."

At the other side of the arena, Night had a finger on his chin as he looked down at the grassy arena. Night then turned to Leaf, who had a very worried expression on her face. "What is wrong Leaf?" Night asked.

"Just…" Leaf tensed up but then relaxed. "Just a little worried for Hunter, that is all."

Night just smiled and looked back down while looking at Hunter who was adjusting his jacket. "Hunter is enjoying himself with Ash, I know he is having a lot of fun down there." At this Night noticed a slightly less worried look on Leaf's face which caused him to relax a little as he then looked at the scoreboard in front of him:

 **Ash:** _Charizard Greninja Sceptile_ (pokeball) (pokeball) **Goodra**

 **Hunter:** _Tyranitar Electivire_ (pokeball) Zapdos Feraligatr Blaziken

 **At the battle:**

"Go! Blaziken!" Hunter shouted as he threw a pokeball out into the field. The pokeball arched over the now wet grass and then burst into a white light that flashed brightly in the dimmed stadium due to the rain clouds. Blaziken then stood in front of Ash and Goodra with a strong pose as his fire burned brightly on his limbs despite the fact that the rain was splashing around. Hunter then put his fist out as he began to cry out his command. "Blaziken use blaze kick!"

"Ziken!" Blaziken shouted as he jumped into the air that was engulfed with rain and then began to fall with his leg down and pointed towards Goodra. Ash and Goodra braced themselves as Blaziken then slammed his burning leg right onto Goodra, who was straining for a bit before Blaziken then retracted his way to be in front of his trainer.

Goodra leaned over and clutched his abdomen in pain as he felt himself get engulfed in flames. Ash did not seem extremely panicked as he saw this as just then, Goodra began to glow green and the red rash that Goodra had over his stomach disappeared to be replaced with more goo the slowly began to leak down into the ground. At this Goodra smirked and made a battlecry along to Hunter and Blaziken's alarmed expressions.

" _Once again Hydration protects Goodra from status conditions!"_

"Alright Goodra, give them a powerful thunder!" Ash ordered as he put his fist out in a victorious pose.

"GOOO!" Goodra cried as he made himself glow in electricity. Just at that moment, Goodra launched an eruption of electricity that curved through the grass and then began to approach Blaziken who was clenching his fist with determination.

"Use flamethrower!"

"ZIKEN!" Blaziken shouted as he launched a weakened barrage of flames in the direction of the electricity. Both attacks collided in the middle of the grassy arena, thus causing an explosion that sent smoke everywhere throughout the arena. Ash gasped as he had to cover himself with his hands and then flinched as he saw how Goodra began to fall forward with exhaustion.

"Goodra can you continue?" Ash asked with a worried voice as he noticed Goodra continuing to strain.

"GOO!" Goodra responded as he looked back at Ash and then smirked. "Goo Goodra!"

"Alright Goodra," Ash said as he then turned his attention back to the field. Ash then saw that the best way to knock down Blaziken would probably have to be to deliver a hit that was strong at close range, but even that would be a challenge with Blaziken's increased speed in comparison to Goodra despite the rain advantage. "Goodra, I have an idea, but I am going to need you to stay where you are." Goodra nodded as he then eyed down Blaziken, who was now running forward at the command of a flamethrower. "Use bide!"

"Goo!" Goodra shouted as he nodded and prepared himself for the barrage of flames. The flames quickly slammed into Goodra, but Goodra put his hand in front of him as he focused on the power of the rain that was healing him from above. Ash had his teeth gritted and his fists clenched as he saw this and narrowed his eyes to see the blood red aura forming around Goodra.

" _What is Goodra doing? Goodra seems to be enduring the entire flamethrower!"_

"Alright then, Blaziken start to get closer as you use flamethrower!" Blaziken did not even blink as he began to slowly walk towards Goodra, slowly making it worse for the slimy dragon that was trying to endure the hit. Blaziken then got next to Goodra and Hunter made the next command: "Now use bravebird!" Blaziken stopped his attack and began to glow blue to then bend his knees and travel the short distance that was between him and Goodra. The dragon type then flinched as his green eyes gleamed to the incoming attack. Blaziken slammed into the large dragon's chest thus making his aura darken as Goodra then began to lean forward in pain and one closed eye. "How is he still not down?" Hunter asked in surprise as he saw this.

"LET'S GO!" Ash commanded as he raised his hand into the air. Goodra then made his white beam of energy surge outwards and streak with great speed through the grass. At this the crowd erupted into gasps as Blaziken got enveloped in a large bubble of white energy that then turned into a white aura of energy that swirled upwards before exploding. " **BOOM!"**

" _And there is Ash's counter attack! A direct hit with bide!"_

"Blaziken!" Hunter exclaimed in panic as he had to cover himself with his hand from the large explosion that surrounded the field. The smoke quickly cleared due to the rain, but Blaziken was still standing.

"ZIKEN! BLAZIKEN!" Blaziken cried as he then charged up his limbs and ignited his body into fire.

"What?" Ash asked in confusion in awe at how Blaziken was still standing. "Use thunder quick!" At that very moment Goodra quickly launched his attack, but the rain began to slowly disappear because of the prolonged time of being in effect. Ash then flinched as he witnessed how Blaziken quickly dodged the attack. Blaziken then had a large aura of blue fire as he began to edge nearer to Goodra who was not expecting a flare blitz. Ash flinched at this and then made the biggest risk he could: "Grab hold of Blaziken!"

"GOOOO!" Goodra shouted as he hugged Blaziken and secured his ears around the fire and fighting type white at the same time wincing in pain due to the fire attack. Ash and Hunter clenched their fists as they saw this and kept calling out for their pokemon to keep going and to not give up.

" _Both pokemon are at such close proximity! This is going to be a large blow for both of them!"_

Ash knew he had to do something fast as he then put his arms out and shouted: "USE DRACO METEOR!"

"GOOOO!" Goodra charged up as he looked on at Blaziken who was in front of him and still on blue fire. Between the two pokemon, Goodra made a ball of orange energy that then began to grow and grow. "DRAAAA!" Goodra exclaimed as he then made the ball explode into meteors at such a close proximity that involved him and Blaziken.

" **BOOM!"**

Ash and Hunter both covered their faces with their hands as they flinched at the way that Goodra had just landed the attack at such a close range. The explosion caused a large energetical shockwave of blue fire and golden plasma that surged through the arena and caused the trainer's clothes to ruffle as the wind of the shockwave began to alleviate itself. Both trainers then looked up to see both pokemon standing in front of them with determined faces. The public was completely silent during the standoff, mostly shocked at the intensity of the last attack.

" _THEY ARE STILL STANDING! THEY ARE STILL STANDING!"_

"Blaziken…" Hunter muttered.

"Goodra…" Ash muttered.

Goodra's balance then fluctuated as the slimy dragon fell to his knees and this made Ash's eyes widen as Goodra kept one eye open with half of his body still on the ground. Ash knew that any attack from Blaziken and this would be over for Goodra.

"Ken…" Blaziken muttered as he then fell on his side and slammed his head into the grassy ground.

"Blaziken no!" Hunter shouted as he saw this, but it was too late as Blaziken had swirls in his eyes from the exhaustion.

"Blaziken is unable to battle, Goodra wins!" The referee calls out as Hunter begins to recall Blaziken back into red energy that went into the pokeball. The scoreboard then eliminated Blaziken from Hunter's roster and Ash and Pikachu jumped onto the field to check on Goodra.

" _Goodra pulled through at the last second! This was definitely one of the most intense battles yet!"_

"Goodra, are you alright?" Ash asked as he kneeled down next to Goodra, who was kneeling on the ground panting hard.

"Pikapi?" Pikachu asked alongside Ash.

Goodra turned to Ash and gave a crooked grin while saying, "Goo, Goodra."

"Goodra you were great, you made us come back from our previous losses," Ash then smiled as he then recalled Goodra back into his own pokeball. "Take a break for now, I may need you later." Ash said this and at the same time, Goodra's pokeball nodded with excitement. Ash then walked back to the trainer's platform as he put his pokeball back on his belt while hearing the crowd roar with excitement. Ash looked around to see the monitors showing his face as he looked up at the camera, and then Ash sighed as he looked down at his electric friend, "Pikachu, I think we are now back in the game!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted with excitement as he pumped his fists.

" _This match is now on a three on three situation, who will Hunter go with next?"_

At the same time, Hunter threw a pokeball onto the grass. "GO Feraligatr!"

"LIGATR!" Feraligatr shouted as flexed his muscles and made water shoot around him with intensity.

Ash saw this and went wide eyed as he then turned back to his electric friend, "Pikachu, why don't you take this battle?"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu shouted as he pumped his fist. Pikachu then walked towards the field, but stopped as he then turned back to Ash and waited patiently.

Ash knew that Pikachu was wanting his usual call to be put into the field and at this Ash chuckled as he then pointed into the air and shouted, "Pikachu! I choose you!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he jumped over Ash and fell in front of him while collecting electricity on his cheeks. "Pika pikachu!" Pikachu shouted with excitement to finally have some time to battle.

" _And we now have Pikachu against Feraligatr!"_

 **At the stands:**

Serena was at the edge of her seat as she watched the cheering crowd. She knew that Ash had just brought it back to a three on three, and there was no holding back at this point. "Three on three," Serena said as she turned to Shauna. "I think Ash can pull it off and Pikachu will bring it to him!"

Shauna nodded at this as she saw the electric rodent on the arena with the blue alligator making a standoff in which they were both eyeing each other. "It will be a tough matchup, but Ash has the type advantage so maybe there is a chance."

"Keep in mind that Hunter has purely tired pokemon. He still has Zapdos and Eevee on his party, but Eevee is the one that is fully rested," Clemont said as he put a finger up to his glasses and made a glare. "Maybe Ash does have a chance after all."

"CHU PI!" An electric rodent flashed out of Serena's belt and landed on her lap. The small pokemon opened up her ears and looked down onto the field to see Pikachu was up to battle. At this she began to jump up and down on Serena's lap and everyone turned their attentions to the small rodent. "Pichu chu pichu?" Kapi asked with enthusiasm.

Serena chuckled a little as she nodded and let the shining eyes of the small Pichu to roam the battlefield eyeing Pikachu. "No way, you caught a Pichu?" Shauna asked with enthusiasm as she eyed the small rodent.

Serena turned to Shauna and said: "Yea, and Kapi is sure to support Pikachu and Ash all the way… Specially the former." The last part Serena whispered to the brunette. Shauna chuckled a little at that as Bonnie then looked down on the field and pumped her fists while yelling good luck to Ash and Pikachu.

Serena heard as the crowd began to roar in excitement as the battle was about to begin, this put her at the edge of her seat with nerves, but also with determination that Ash will pull through and win against the Johto starter.

 **At the battle:**

"Ash, my Feraligatr is one of the most powerful fighters. I doubt your Pikachu can even do anything against it," Hunter taunted as he put a hand on his hips. Hearing this, Feraligatr grew to be more intimidating obviously trying to push Pikachu back.

"Pika pika…" Pikachu did not flinch as he eyed down Feraligatr with slight irritation at what his opponents have just said.

"When it comes to Pikachu, we can do just about anything!" Ash shouted with a smirk and a pumped fist as he looked on towards the battle to see Pikachu charging up electricity while sitting still. Ash eyed carefully as Pikachu and Feraligatr barely moved at all, it was as if one was trying to concentrate on the other. Pikachu did not even budge as he waited for Feraligatr to make a move.

" _Which one of the two will make the first move? I am so excited, this seems like it will be one of the most intense battles yet!"_

Just as expected, Pikachu twitched his ear to test and see if Hunter would react, and sure enough Hunter pointed forward and shouted, "Use crunch!" Feraligatr did not even blink as he made his jaw glow and then began to charge the electric rodent that was narrowing his eyes towards the alligator that was running across the grass.

Ash knew he had to act fast so he put his hand out and commanded for an iron tail. "Pika Pika Pika… CHUPI!" Pikachu shouted as he jumped into the air and then with his hardened tail slammed it in between the jaw that closed down on the iron tail. At this moment, the two were caught in the middle of the grassy terrain with the people sitting in the stands of the hexagon were cheering.

" _Feraligatr has just clamped down on Pikachu's iron tail! What can Ash do now?"_

"Thunderbolt!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu smirked as he delivered his lethal shock to the light blue opponent. At this, Feraligatr staggered back and fell in front of Hunter who had his teeth gritted obviously not expecting such an attack.

Ash quickly put his hand out and pointed forward to the other end of the battlefield and gave his next command: "Quick attack let's go!" Pikachu made a battle cry as he made himself glow white and then began to dart forward like a bullet in the direction of Feraligatr. Pikachu then jumped up and quickly slammed himself into Feraligatr thus causing the water type to stagger back and make Pikachu go into the while performing a backflip.

"Use hydro pump!" Hunter quickly retaliated while seeing the opening. Feraligatr did not even spend a lot of time looking at the direction that Pikachu was flying and then made his jet of water appear and go in the direction of Pikachu. Pikachu flinched as his eyes gleamed at the incoming attack.

"PIKAAA!" Pikachu cried as he fell back towards the ground completely soaked in water.

" _Pikachu just took heavy damage from that attack! This seems to be looking bad for Pikachu!"_

"Pikachu are you alright?" Ash asked with worry as he then saw Pikachu stand back up without difficulty. Ash then pumped his fist as he said: "Alright then Pikachu, I believe in you." Pikachu smiled at this as he then narrowed his eyes and looked forward to see Feraligatr now coming in with a brick break charged up. Ash then narrowed his eyes and put his hands out. "Pikachu use iron tail!" Pikachu got to work as he made his tail glow white and then jumped in the direction of the brick break that was incoming. Pikachu and Feraligatr closed the gap and when that happened, there was a stalemate that involved Pikachu and Feraligatr's attacks causing sparks and a lot of power to then erupt in both directions with a shockwave.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried as he slammed into the grass and rolled around in a cloud of dust.

"Feraligatr…." Feraligatr grunted as he fell opposite of Pikachu in a similar matter.

"Feraligatr jump back up and use hydro pump!" Hunter shouted as he pumped his fist. Feraligatr quickly got up and then charged up his mouth to expel a jet of water in the direction of Pikachu. The horizontal vortex of water went towards Pikachu in such a manner that it was not dodgeable for the small electric rodent.

"Pikachu!" Ash shouted with worry as he noticed Pikachu slowly get back up to his feet. Looking ahead he saw the hydro pump and he knew he had to act quick. Ash then put his hand in a crane like fashion aimed at the ground and then pumped his fist on both sides. "Use iron tail on the battlefield!"

"CHU PI!" Pikachu shouted as he slammed his hardened tail onto the ground to make a large dust cloud erupt from the ground. At this the hydro pump dissipated into nothing as it was completely blocked thus causing Hunter to smirk.

" _Ash just used iron tail to block hydro pump! What an amazing combination of moves!"_

"Impressive…" Hunter then pumped his fist. "Use ice punch!"

"Pika?" Pikachu asked as the dust cloud then emerged into a blue alligator with a freezing punch ready to strike.

"Dodge it!"

It was too late as the attack collided and made Pikachu fall in front of Ash with great amounts of fatigue. "Pika!" Pikachu cried as he got up with ice on the electric rodent's back. "Pikachu…" Pikachu then struggled a little to get back up which made Ash grit his teeth.

"Finish it with hydro pump!" Hunter shouted with a victorious stance as he smiled brightly.

"LIGATR!" Feraligatr shouted as he put his hands down on the grass and began to shoot the jet of water towards Pikachu who was close to the ground.

" _Uh oh, is this it for Pikachu?"_

Ash then put his hand out as a unique glint of fighting spirit came to his eyes. "Pikachu get on your back and use counter shield now!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUU!" Pikachu shouted as he got on his back and began to spin around the ice on his back. Pikachu spun faster than usual due to the lack of friction and the thunderbolt then turned into a crackling vortex of electricity that began to consume the entire portion of the battlefield that was nearest to Ash. Ash then smirked as he saw the water attack collide with the large electric tornado that was causing Ash's hair to shake and the scarf to wave with intensity.

The water collided with the electricity and then due to minerals in the water, the electricity was conducted through the water and in less than a second ended up electrocuting Feraligatr. "Feraligatr no!" Hunter shouted in panic as he noticed Feraligatr slam his head into the ground with exhaustion. Feraligatr then stood back up with electricity surging through his body which caused Hunter to grit his teeth while muttering: "Dang it paralysis…"

" _Feraligatr has been paralyzed after the hydro pump conducted the electricity back towards Feraligatr! The tables might have just turned!"_

"Pikachu use iron tail!" Ash shouted with a large smirk.

"Use crunch!"

"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed as he had his tail hardened and glowing white, streaking through the air while swinging down.

"Fera!" Feraligatr made his jaw open up towards Pikachu and although some electricity surged through him, Feraligatr was able to close his jaw on the bolt shaped tail.

At this, Hunter did not even hesitate to get rid of Pikachu from the contact. "Throw him into the air!"

"LIGATR!" Feraligatr cried as he then swung his head around and threw Pikachu to soar through the air.

At this, Ash smirked as he then noticed that it was his chance to finish things up. "Pikachu!" Ash shouted while pumping both of his fist. "Use electric overdrive!" At the last part, Ash slammed his fist into the trainer's platform as he then saw his best friend beginning to glow with an electric aura and the rain clouds were beginning to form overhead. Ash then saw as a couple of electric strikes from the rain clouds burst down and collided with Feraligatr, thus causing the water type to stagger and fall to his knees.

"PIKA!" Pikachu shouted as he then felt the water pour down and interact with the electricity he was charging up. Pikachu then made his eyes go on fire as he pulled back his fist and then emitted all of the energy he had stored up into the grass below. "CHUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu cried as he made the ground begin to rise up with electricity surging in the direction of Feraligatr.

"Gatr…" Feraligatr sank to his hands due to the paralysis as he then faced as the electricity was nearing him.

" **BOOM!"** An explosion rang out through the stadium as it caused a shockwave that involved the entire arena. When the smoke cleared, it showed that Pikachu was standing in front of a standing Feraligatr. Ash noticed as Feraligatr was smiling about something to then fall to his knees and cave down into the ground.

"Feraligatr is unable to battle!" The referee declared as he raised his hand. "Pikachu wins!"

" _And Pikachu has just finished this battle off for Ash to finally take the lead for once during the entire battle! Amazing teamwork by Ash and Pikachu!"_

"Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted as he jumped on Ash's shoulder and cuddled his cheeks on Ash while hearing the crowd cheer.

"Alright Pikachu! That was awesome!" Ash praised the electric type as he hugged him. It was clear now, Ash had retaken the lead from a start that had him down by two, and now he is ahead by one. Pikachu then went down from Ash and sat next to the raven haired trainer. The latter at this point knew that Pikachu wanted some time to recharge his batteries, so he did not blame him.

Hunter recalled Feraligatr and pulled out another pokeball. Ash knew who it was since it was the only one that could possible be on a pokeball at this point. "Zapdos let's go!"

"Zapdos!" Zapdos emerged from the pokeball and charged up an electrical charge that went through the grassy arena and dissipated through the terrain and the raining clouds.

Ash without a hesitation despite being completely wet at this point reached into his belt and pulled out a pokeball, "Go Noivern!"

"Noivern!" Noivern shouted as he appeared in the air flapping his wings while looking ahead towards Zapdos, who was looking back at Noivern with a menacing look.

" _Noivern? This is going to be an aerial battle that will be sure to entertain everyone!"_

"So, using a flying type against an electric type?" Hunter asked with amusement. "This battle is as good as mine!"

"I would not be too sure about that," Ash said as he pumped his fist. "Noivern is capable of so much!" Noivern cried back with excitement at what Ash said as the raven haired trainer then commanded his first move: "Go into the air and hide inside of the rain clouds!" Noivern nodded at this and instantly looked up while soaring into the sky and then concealing himself inside of the rain clouds that were pouring down rain.

" _Ash is taking an initiative by going into the rain clouds, what now for Hunter?"_

"Follow him!" Hunter retaliated thus making the electric type soar into the sky and also go into the clouds in search of the sound wave dragon. "Use thunderbolt on the rain clouds!" Zapdos made himself glow in electricity and then the steak of electricity soared towards the clouds and when the lightning collided, it caused the clouds to light up in electricity and explode overhead.

"Vern!" Noivern cried as he began to fall down towards the ground in obvious pain from the conducted electric attack.

"Noivern straighten yourself out and use boomburst!" Ash ordered while pumping both of his fists at his side.

"VERN!" Noivern shouted as he made his large ears glow white and then shoot the sound wave vortex of power at Zapdos.

"Dodge it!" Hunter shouted as he saw the potential threat of the normal type move. Zapdos flapped his wings as he began to fly upwards and around the boomburst. Zapdos did three successful barrel rolls as the sound attack then disappeared behind Zapdos. Noivern then flew under Zapdos and then flew to be in front of the way in which the electric type was heading. "Use steel wing!"

"Supersonic!" Zapdos then made his wings glow white, but at the same time, Noivern made his ears glow white and shoot a sound out of his ears that made Zapdos stop in his tracks and begin to fall back down towards the ground. Ash then saw this as his opportunity to strike as Noivern then stopped his attack and began to dive towards the electric and flying legendary pokemon. "Now use sky attack!" Ash commanded as he put his hand out to the side.

"Noi! NOIVERN!" Noivern shouted as he began to glow in a very gold and bright aura as he fell and then slammed into the side of the electric type to cause a large cloud of smoke to envelop Zapdos. Noivern then kept his aura of gold as he pulled up and began to ascend towards the rain clouds above him.

"Use wild charge!" Hunter exclaimed as he looked up towards Zapdos, who emerged from the cloud of smoke with an aura of electricity charging towards Noivern who was in the air. Noivern and Zapdos then began to chase each other through the air as they reached the rain clouds above and concealed themselves inside.

" _We can't see anything! This has me at the edge of my seat!"_

 **At the stands:**

"This is so intense…" Night whispered as he then saw a lightning bolt strike the grassy battlefield. Leaf and Night both looked up into the air to see bright sparks of lightning and gold explode inside the rain clouds at different intervals.

"Come on Noivern…" Serena muttered as she held Kapi close to her. Both trainer and pokemon were at the edge of their seats due to the intensity of the battle. Clemont as well was trembling in his seat due to the excitement of the electricity being exchanged during the battle.

"Come on Ash!" Brock shouted as he cuffed his hands. The cheering crowd again was being extremely hard to talk over, but it was obvious that Ash needed the support he needed to win the battle.

"The way this battle is going, it could go either way," Trevor said with a worried expression until he then saw the clouds from the sky begin to clear over the grass. Trevor then noticed how Ash and Hunter had gritted teeth as the clouds began to disappear thus allowing the sun to peer into the arena. As soon as the rain clouds were completely gone, it was shown that Noivern and Zapdos were still under their respective auras and then collided once more in a strong collision of sky attack and wild charge that made a smoke cloud appear in mid air due to how strong the collision was.

"What happened?" Calem asked as he looked forward to then notice a glint from the cloud of smoke.

"Huh?" Serena stood up nervously with Kapi in her hands to see both flying types fall out of the sky with smoke coming from their wings and crash into the grass below with individual thuds. Then, Serena saw as both flying types then stood up with crippled wings in front of each other.

 **At the battle:**

" _Both pokemon are on the ground! Is this it for both of them?"_

Ash and Hunter waited patiently to see which pokemon would cave in to the exhaustion first, but when they noticed that both pokemon still had some energy on them, they decided they could still battle, but from the ground.

"Use thunderbolt!" Hunter shouted with a raised hand.

"Use boomburst!" Ash exclaimed.

Both attacks were charged and attacked, but after everything, they ended up in a collision that did not go either way, but caused a large shockwave that sent a wind through the trainer platforms. Hunter then emerged as he saw his opportunity to finish things off. "Use heat wave!"

"DOOSSSS!" Zapdos cried as he flapped his wings and launched the wave of hell in the direction of Noivern. Ash gritted his teeth as Noivern took the hit head on while protecting himself by putting his wings over himself.

"Noivern use hurricane!" Ash shouted with a fist out and clenching his other fist in worry. Noivern flapped his wings and made the wind begin to carry the heat around him and begin to charge up. Zapdos continued using the heat wave, but after some time, the fire began to grow extremely big around Noivern. "Noivern, now make the hurricane become the center of the field!" At this Noivern reeled his head up and made the gust of fiery wind be the center of the battlefield with great amounts of power. Zapdos continued to make the heat wave larger and larger, but after a while, both pokemon were consumed in the inferno while taking damage. Ash could feel the heat beginning to make him sweat more than he usually does during battles and he knew that Noivern would not be able to hold up even more, so he put his hands out to the sides as the fire begins to consume the trainer platforms including Ash and Pikachu along with Hunter and Eevee at the other end of the arena. "Use sky attack!" Ash shouted with gritted teeth.

"Use wild charge!" Hunter shouted with a similar attitude.

"NOIVERN!"

"ZAPDOS!"

Both auras of light pierced through the fire hurricane and met in the eye of the infernal vortex. Both attacks strained with power as sparks went everywhere to the trainer's expressions of not giving up. Suddenly, both auras became so big that it detonated the time bomb waiting to happen.

" _A fire vortex with two pokemon clashing in the eye of the hurricane! I can barely catch my breath!"_

" **BOOM!"**

"Pika…"

"Urgh!" Ash grunted as he covered himself through the intense fire and explosive action that was happening. "Noivern!" Ash cried as he did not know what happened at all.

"Eevee…"

"Zapdos!" Hunter cried as he also covered his face at the explosion. "Urgh!"

The grassy arena made a large hemisphere of fire, wind, electricity, and celestial energy to charge up and then scatter throughout the entire arena which caused the crowd to look at the arena with their mouths agape at what just happened in complete silence. The lights and even the scoreboard flickered off and on as the explosion that dominated the field completely died down.

" _Is it over? What happened?"_

"Noivern!"

"Zapdos!"

Both trainers could not help but cry out to their pokemon as the noticed both flying types on the ground immobile.

"Both Zapdos and Noivern are unable to battle!" The referee declared. "It is a draw!" At this the entire crowd erupted into cheers as Ash and Hunter both recalled their pokemon back into their pokeballs.

" _AMAZING! And so many collisions lead to a double knock out!"_

"Noivern you were great, take a good rest," Ash praised as he then clipped his pokeball back into his belt. Ash then took a look at the scoreboard, it was a close one at this point, but Hunter still had a completely rested pokemon to battle with:

 _Eevee._

 **Ash:** _Charizard Greninja Sceptile Noivern_ Goodra Pikachu

 **Hunter:** _Tyranitar Electivire Blaziken Feraligatr Zapdos_ (Pokeball)

"My last pokemon," Hunter said as he then pointed forward and exclaimed: "Let's go Eevee!"

"Eevee!" Eevee shouted as he jumped into the arena. The grass was very burned off at this point, but it was still in tact surprisingly to everyone in the hexagonal stadium.

Ash felt like he needed a tank to take care of this battle, so he unclipped a pokeball from his belt and shouted, "Let's go Goodra!"

" _And Eevee and Goodra will be battling, now Hunter down to his last pokemon!"_

"Goodra!" Goodra shouted as the bright light from the pokeball materialized into the dragon type that landed on the ground with a large thud. "DRAAA!" Goodra shouted with excitement as he eyed down the opponent he would go up against. The referee then signaled for the battle to resume, and Ash decided to go for the first move.

"Goodra use thunder!"

"DRAAA!" Goodra shouted as he made the electric attack brun through the ground in the direction of Eevee.

"Dodge it!" Hunter shouted to which Eevee jumped out of the way with ease.

Ash flinched a little as he noticed this and then put his arm out, "Goodra use draco meteor!" Goodra instantly made the ball of energy surge into the sky and after a bit, it exploded into the many meteors that would be falling over the arena.

" _What an attack! Will Eevee be able to successfully come out of this one?"_

"Not gonna happen! Protect!"

"Eevee!" Eevee shouted as he made the aqua marine shield in front of him to which many orange meteors flowed into thus protecting the small brown fox pokemon.

"Now Eevee, use shadow ball!" Hunter shouted as Eevee charged up the purple ball of energy on his mouth to then fire towards the dragon type pokemon. Ash saw how the attack was nearing, so he made himself an attack that may be a little risky after all.

"Goodra use bide!"

"Gooo…" Goodra said as he took the hit and made a light red aura around himself due to the attack not being so powerful. Goodra then slouched down in pain due to exhaustion, but Ash knew that Goodra would need to take something even more powerful to be defeated.

"Go!" Ash shouted while putting his fist out. Goodra launched the beam of white energy towards the small fox pokemon, but at this Hunter smirked.

"I got you now," Hunter said as he then put his hand into the air. "Use hyper beam!"

"EEEEEEEVVVVVEEEEEE!" Eevee shouted as he launched a dark draconic beam towards the white one. The two attacks collided and struggled against each other, but then the hyper beam easily over powered and came up on Goodra thus causing an explosion that enveloped Goodra.

"Goodra no!"

"Pika!"

When the dust cleared, it was shown that Goodra was on the ground with no energy at all to continue fighting, "Goodra is unable to battle," The referee declared. "Eevee wins!"

" _And this is it! Goodra is down and both trainers are down to their final pokemon!"_

 **At the stands:**

"Poor Goodra," Shauna said as she covered her mouth. Calem crossed his arms in obvious distress for Ash knowing that both trainers were down to their last pokemon.

"It comes down to Pikachu against Eevee doesn't it?" Tierno asked as he noticed Goodra on the grass get absorbed into red energy and then disappeared into Ash's pokeball before going on Ash's belt.

"I believe in Pikachu," the honey blonde haired girl declared as she edged closer to the edge of her seat with Kapi on her shoulder.

"Pichu!" Kapi cried as she looked down to the field and saw Ash and Hunter in a staredown.

Clemont and Brock exchanged a nervous look, but Bonnie got up from her seat and put her fist into the air, "Go Ash! Go Pikachu!"

"Night, will Hunter win?" Leaf asked in worry as she sat next to Night with her hands on her heart. "Both are down to their last pokemon."

"I don't know…" Night said as he then eyed Ash before then eyeing Hunter. "It is hard to tell who will win, but I suggest you keep your faith on Hunter."

"Jolteon!" Jolteon said with a sympathetic tone as he neared Leaf and gave her a very comforting touch.

Leaf chuckled at this before she then got a confident look on her face and then pumped her fist, "You are right, Hunter will win! I know he will!"

Night smiled at Leaf before turning back to the field and noticing that it was definitely it, this was the end of the battle… Whatever happens… Happens.

 **At the battle:**

Pikachu looked at Eevee with a serious face… Pikachu now knew that the battle would be decided on his be battled. If he won, then Ash and him would move onto the next round, but if he lost… Pikachu shook with nerves at the thought of the battle being entirely on his shoulders. Although Pikachu knew that he had done it before, he never thought it would happen at this big of a stage. Pikachu shook a little next to Ash as the raven haired boy looked down at Pikachu obviously knowing what was going on in the rodent's mind.

"Pikachu," Ash said as he kneeled down next to Pikachu. "I have been in this situation before of being the person that people depend on to win as a team." Pikachu went wide eyed as Ash then stuck out his hand and said, "I want to win this along side you Pikachu, you deserve to get us this win more than anyone else!"

"Pika…" Pikachu said in wonder as he then stuck his hand out and shook Ash's hand with newly gained confidence. Pikachu then turned towards the grass and looked back at Ash while motioning towards the field. "Pika Pikachu!"

"Right!" Ash said as he then pointed into the grassy field and shouted: "Pikachu… I CHOOSE YOU!"

"Pika!" Pikachu jumped on Ash's shoulder which shocked the raven haired trainer a little because he expected the electric type to jump above him. "Pikachu…" Pikachu rubbed his cheek among Ash's cheek and made a little bit of electricity crackle between the two.

"Oh come on Pikachu," Ash said with a little bit of amusement and flatter at the action. He then smirked as he saw Pikachu run through his extended hand and then leap off into the field. "Alright!" Ash exclaimed with excitement.

"Pika pikachu!" Pikachu said as he got on all fours and charged up electricity on his cheeks before then expelling it on all directions. "PIKACHU!"

" _Pikachu is getting prepared, this is going to be an intense match. Guaranteed to be a highlight of the tournament!"_

"Yes!" Ash shouted with a pumped fist. "Now we are all fired up!"

"I am fired up too Ash!" Hunter declared from the other side of the arena.

"Right! Let's go with everything we have!" Ash declared as he signaled to Pikachu. "Pikachu and I will not go down so easily!"

"Neither will Eevee and I," Hunter said with a smirk. "Right Eevee?"

"Eevee!" The fox pokemon exclaimed while staring down Pikachu.

The referee then resumed the battle and Ash made the first move by pointing forward: "Pikachu, use thunderbolt!"

"Pika… CHUUUU!" Pikachu shouted as made himself glow in electricity and then jump into the air to fire the electric attack towards Eevee.

Hunter saw the attack coming and quickly put his hand out, "Quick use protect!" The electricity surged through the grass as it then made a zigzag motion across the grass before getting close to Eevee. The normal type quickly reacted and made the shield appear in front of him that blocked the electric attack. Hunter then put his hand out and shouted, "Use shadow ball!" Eevee quickly reeled his head back before shooting the ghost type sphere towards Pikachu.

" _Eevee protects himself and not goes for a counter attack, what will Ash's strategy be?"_

"Quick Pikachu, use iron tail and knock the shadow ball down and propel yourself into the air," Ash commanded with his two pumped fists. Pikachu quickly began to run towards the sphere and then made his tail glow white as he then jumped above the shadow ball and down cut on it to then make it crash into the ground below with a small explosion while causing Pikachu to go into the air with the reflection of the peering sun into the stadium.

"Use iron tail!" Hunter retaliated as Eevee jumped up with his tail glowing white. Both attacks collided in the air with a stalemate that then caused both pokemon to return to be in front of their trainers with a feel for each other's power.

"Ash, this battle has been fun," Hunter said. "But I think it is time we gave it our all and decide who the winner is!"

"I agree Hunter," Ash said with a pumped fist. "Get ready, because here I come!" Ash and Hunter then narrowed their eyes as they looked down at their opponents before striking again.

 **Courtesy Call- Nightcore**

Pikachu and Eevee stared at each other while holding their tails up ready to strike. Both were not moving.

 _Heeyyyoo, there comes a danger up in this club, when we get started we ain't gonna stop, we going to turn it out 'till it get's too hot!_

The entire arena was silent waiting for either pokemon to make a move...

 _Everybody sing, heeyyyoo, don't turn it out 'til they get no more, let's get this thing shakin' like a disco ball, this is your last worn in a courtesy call._

Pikachu then twitches his tail to try and make Eevee flinch. Eevee steps back a bit which makes Ash narrow his eyes and prepare himself.

 **Violins come in** _Heyoo, there comes a danger up in this club! When we get started we ain't gonna stop, we going to turn it out 'till it gets too hot!_

"IRON TAIL!" Both trainers shout at the same time as both pokemon make their tails glow white and dart forward towards each other with great power.

 _Everybody sing…_

 **Guitar kicks in with the beat**. Both pokemon collide their tails amongst each other like a sword duel where they are attempting to take down the opponent. _HEEYOOO down turn it up till they can't no more Let's get this thing shakin' like a disco ball, this is you last warning a courtesy call…_

Both pokemon appear in front of their trainers while panting since they just hit their heart out with their tails, but it was not over just yet. Ash then put his hand out as he made his next command, "Use quick attack and at the same time use thunderbolt on yourself!"

"PIKA!" Pikachu shouted as he made himself glow an electric aura and then began to run towards Eevee with a trail of electricity behind him. "Pika pika pika pika pika...". _I am not afraid, of the storm that comes my way…_

"Use hyperbeam!" Hunter shouted as he made his hand go into the air. Eevee did not even take long to charge up the dark attack as he then directed it towards Pikachu that was running towards him. **Intensity in the song grows** _When it hits it shakes me to the core and makes me stronger than before!_ Pikachu slammed head on into the hyper beam and began to run through it. Halfway through, Pikachu slowed down a little, but then made it to be right in front of Eevee.

"GOOO!" Ash shouted with great power.

"PIKACHU!" Pikachu shouted as he slammed himself into Eevee and caused a large explosion in the middle of the field to which Eevee and Pikachu both got sent back, but Pikachu regained his balance first.

"Use thunderbolt!" A mirage image of Ash showed as Pikachu jumped into the air and through his gleaming eyes made the electricity surge in the direction of Eevee. The fox did not even move as he stood up and clenched his fists to take the attack. The thunderbolt hit and Eevee tried his best to control the electricity that was shocking him. _CAN YOU FEEL IT? MAKE IT REAL!_

"Use shadow ball!" Hunter shouted as Eevee made himself charge up a dark ball of sinister electricity that then shot off towards Pikachu who was still in the air. _I think it might wash away tonight!_ The shadow ball collides with Pikachu and sends him flying back to be in front of Ash in all fours. _Awaken from this NEVER ENDING…._

"Go in with iron tail!" Ash shouted.

"You too!" Hunter declared as he saw this.

 _Fight! It takes more than meets the eye… This war we are fighting, is not just rotting…_

 _HEEEEYYYOOO there comes a danger up in this club._ Pikachu and Eevee begin to collide iron tails similar to how they did before, but this time, Eevee manages to get a side hit on Pikachu.

"Pika!" Pikachu shouts as he falls back on his feel and on his right hand.

"Pikachu, are you alright?" Ash asked as he noticed the electric type straining.

"Pika pikachu!" Pikachu responded as he looked back at Ash with a very intense look. _There is a rumble in the floor… So get prepared for war._

"Charge up electricity on your cheeks!" Ash ordered as Pikachu then made his cheeks begin to collect electricity. _CAN YOU FEEL IT? MAKE IT REAL!_

"Use hyper beam once more!" Hunter shouted with all his might as he noticed Pikachu and Ash not attacking them.

"EEEEVEEEEE!" Eevee cried as he shot the beam of dark gaia energy right at Pikachu.

"Use thunderbolt on yourself!" Ash shouted.

 _ **MAKE ME FEEL IT!**_

"Pika… CHUUU!" Pikachu shouted as he made an electric current that then made the entire area near Ash glow in yellow crackling electricity. The hyper beam then came and went around the electricity just like Ash had planned for it to do.

"Just like that Pikachu!" Ash praised as he noticed that as soon as the attack ended, Pikachu sank to his knees. Ash gritted his teeth at that as he knew that this meant that Pikachu was running out of steam. Ash then noticed that Eevee jumped into the air and launched multiple shadow balls in the direction of Pikachu which made the raven haired trainer flinch a little, but Ash did not give up. "Pikachu use iron tail and use those shadow balls to propel you into the air!" Pikachu acted fast as he made his tail stiffen and glow white as he then jumped on top of the spheres of energy. Once Pikachu was above them, Ash threw his fist out in front of him. "Use thunderbolt!"

"Pika… CHUUUUU!"

"Use protect!" Hunter shouted and at the right moment Eevee hit the ground and put up the shield that blocked the electric attack once more. Hunter then noticed as Pikachu fell in front of Eevee with some damage around him and with that he then put both of his fists forward and then pumped them out while shouting his command: "USE HYPER BEAM!"

"EEEEEEEVEEEEEE!" Eevee made a large sphere of black energy in front of him that was twice as large as Eevee himself with great intensity.

 _This is your last warning a courtesy call!_

Ash grabbed his red cap and then inverted it to then take both of his fists and punch the trainer's platform as he shouted: "ELECTRIC OVERDRIVE!"

 **Guitar solo plays**

"PIKA!" Pikachu shouted as he looked up at the air and made his rain clouds appear once more. Pikachu then made himself glow in yellow crackling electricity before then engraving his fist into the ground with determination while feeling the rain pouring down from the sky.

"EEEVEEEEE!" Eevee shouted as he made his attack rip out towards the electric earth that was moving like a wave in the direction of Eevee.

The two attacks met in the middle, both attacks straining to overpower each other. Ash narrowed his eyes and then smirked as he shouted for Pikachu to not give up. Pikachu and Eevee strained and the attacks edged closer and closer to each other before then hyper beam beginning to gain the edge. Ash saw this obviously knowing that if hyper beam got too close, it was over…

"This is it Ash, it looks like I have won!" Hunter declared while looking at Ash with the shock wave causing his hair to move around. Hyper beam was right in front of Pikachu as electric overdrive was the only thing protecting Pikachu at this point.

Ash though, he smirked as his scarf was waving madly in the wind due to how close he is to the collision, "Aren't you forgetting something?" Ash then pointed up just in time for lightning to come down from the rain clouds and strike Eevee with enough voltage to cause the normal type to stop his attack in pain.

"PIKA… CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu did not even have to do anything as his electric earth then instantly zoomed through the grass and slammed into Eevee.

 **Music cuts out.**

" **BOOM!"**

A yellow hemisphere of electricity once again consumed the stadium thus causing a huge shock wave that made Ash and Hunter grit their teeths and shield themselves. When the smoke cleared and the explosion scaled down, Pikachu was in front of Eevee and the rain clouds disappeared from above the arena. The electric rodent then fell to his knees and panted hard as the brown fox across from him looked at Pikachu with a… smile?

"Eevee…" Eevee grunted as he then collapsed to the ground and made a small dust cloud surround him as he fell…

"Eevee is unable to battle, which means the match goes to Ash from Lumiose City!" the referee declared as cheers erupted throughout the stadium and the scoreboard displayed Ash's face as the victor of the battle.

" _And it is over! Ash has emerged victorious once again! This time with an amazing finish by Pikachu!"_

"Eevee!" Hunter shouted with worry as he raced onto the field and checked on his partner. Hunter saw how Eevee slowly opened his eyes and sighed as he then looked down and said, "Eevee, thank you so much for that battle, it was amazing."

"Eevee…" Eevee smiled weakly as he looked up at Hunter. Hunter then noticed as shadow came in front of him. A shadow with raven hair that then kneeled down in front of Hunter.

"Eevee, are you alright?" Ash asked as he also checked on the fox pokemon. Eevee nodded towards Ash as well as the raven haired trainer passed his hand through Eevee's fur and smiled, "Hunter should be very proud of you, I never had so much fun battling such an opponent in a while."

"Thanks Ash, for this amazing battle," Hunter said as both trainers stood up, Eevee in Hunter's arms. "Let's have another one soon, I will get stronger, and hopefully things will go differently."

Ash chuckled at this and said, "No, thank you! You made this battle a whole lot of fun! It was great, and yes, let's have another battle like this one in the future!"

"PIKA Pikachu!" cried from Ash's hands, covered in bruises and scratches, but other than that, completely fine.

At this, both trainers shook hands as a sign of being a good sport, but then Hunter pulled Ash closer and whispered something in his ear, "Listen up Ash, I only lose to champions, so you better be the winner in the long run."

Ash flinched as he heard this and then smiled as he pumped his fist, "You can count on that!" Ash then turned to Pikachu and said, "And we need to get you to a pokemon center because you look like you came right out of the end of the world!"

"Pika pikachu…" Pikachu sweatdropped as Ash and Hunter exchanged a friendly laugh with each other.

 **At the stands:**

"Aww Hunter…" Leaf said with a slightly sad tone while hugging Jolteon trying to get comfortable.

"It's alright Leaf," Night said next to her. "Hunter's journey has just reached another milestone. He was able to experience his first legitimate loss. This will make him stronger in the long run, in fact, this is how I have become this strong," Night explained as he narrowed his eyes towards Hunter. "In fact, now I think he has to potential of being strong enough to defeating any champion depending on Ash's strength."

"I guess you are right," Leaf said with a smile as she looked down to see Hunter and Ash smiling and talking as if they were great friends. "Hunter knows he gave it his best after all, I can't wait to see what is in the future for us- I mean him." Leaf said that last part with a blush and a small smile as she also saw Night give a slight chuckle along with Jolteon.

On the other side of the stadium, the group was celebrating for Ash for his outstanding victory. "HE WON! HE WON!" Bonnie shouted with great amounts of pride into the cheering crowd.

"That was awesome!" Calem said as he clapped his hands along with Shauna, Tierno, Trevor and Tierno.

"That is what a pokemon battle should be," Clemont said as he turned to Brock. "What did you think?"

"I thought it was a great way for Pikachu to show that he is Ash's most trusted companion," Brock said with a smile. "In fact, it was a well deserved victory and an amazing comeback with his two dragons and Pikachu."

"PICHU!" Kapi cheered with a crimson tint on her cheeks. Serena saw them clearly, mostly because she was blushing herself as well due to seeing how well Ash performed in battle. Still, Kapi through that her blush was probably covered by her already red cheeks, but Serena knew better.

"I knew he would win," Serena said with a smile as she eyed down Ash and noticed him and Pikachu cuddling with each other. The pink tint she had on her cheeks quickly developed into crimson lines that covered her cheeks to a bright red tint because of how adorable it was, still she was extremely happy that Ash won. The honey blonde haired girl then stood up from her seat with Kapi on her shoulder and shouted. "Way to go Ash!" At the same time, a gust of wind made her hair wave a little along with her blue ribbon, which she parted to the side with her hand. Her bright smile and blue eyes reflecting off the light of the sun that came from the skylight of the hexagonal stadium.

 **A/N: GASPING FOR AIR! Try reading this entire chapter in one breath… Impossible, don't try this I don't want you to get cyanosis (again, I am interested in the medical field so if there is medical stuff involved, I won't hesitate to add it in).**

 **Anyways, this was a great chapter I wrote. Ash made an amazing come back and I made this battle specifically to be character development for Pikachu, although this came more into play during this chapter other than the last.**

 **Again, I apologize if making Charizard and Greninja fall guys offended you, but in this case I was wanting Pikachu to fill up their spot since after all, it was evident that he deserves this.**

 **I hope you guys enjoyed, and remember to R & R so I will see you guys next time!**


	41. Chapter 41

**In Ash's room:**

"Pika…" Pikachu said in awe as he cuddled in Ash's chest. The raven haired boy was sitting on his bed with the lights turned off around him. In front of him the television was playing highlights from the battles that happened during that day. Right now he was watching the highlights of a Hydreigon that was sweeping through the league with great ease and along with a Darmanitan this trainer was using. It was a trainer that was managing to get through the league with only two pokemon.

"And Damian moves into the quarterfinals with a clean sweep from Darmanitan and Hydreigon!" The announcer in the television exclaimed as Ash sighed and cuddled up more against Pikachu. Looking around, he noticed that the room was empty as it was just him and Pikachu. He knew Serena, Bonnie, Clemont and Brock were all asleep, mostly because there was no sound being heard through the walls. Other than that, Ash kept the volume of the television down to prevent waking any of them up. Ash then focused his attention to the television and raised an eyebrow as he heard the next thing the announcer said: "We will be holding a two day break in order to prepare ourselves for the quarter finals with our last eight trainers. For this, we will be interviewing a select couple of our participants the day after tomorrow and after the matchups are displayed tomorrow, we will make our pick for who to interrogate." Ash then saw as some of the past highlights of the day were played showing how Pikachu managed to get that amazing electric overdrive to get him his win over Hunter.

"That was an amazing battle, right Pikachu?" Ash said as he petted his best friend's fur.

"Chaaaa!" Pikachu cooed as he snuggled up against Ash a little more. Ash liked having Pikachu this close, but it was as if something was starting to make go nuts when he started imagining Serena in Pikachu's place. It was something he was kind of wondering about, but the thought of Serena being this close to him brought joy to him for some reason. At that moment Ash felt as his facial capillaries began to vasodilate thus causing his face to heat up.

"Alright Pikachu, let's go to sleep," Ash said as he turned off the television this leaving the two in a room that was pitch black.

"Pikapi, Pikachu," Pikachu said as he began to shut his eyes and fall asleep.

"Good night to you too Pikachu," Ash said as he closed his eyes and instantly began to feel himself fall asleep. Ash was on his back, meaning that Ash felt as if he was floating, but then he began to feel like he was beginning to be paralyzed. Ash shot open his eyes and began to feel vibrations take over his body. Panicking, Ash closed his eyes again, but something on his ear whispered something to him.

"Pull on the rope above you," it said. Ash felt as his heart was beating more and more. The raven haired boy imagined a rope in front of him and then began to pull on it, the vibrations getting more intense and intense-

"What the…" Ash said as he then floated out into the pitch black room- only to see a blue tint in his vision allowing him to see in the dark. Ash looked around and saw nothing, just the room. Ash felt as his body vibrated though, so he then decided to get up from bed carefully trying not to wake up Pikachu and take a little walk. "Huh?" Ash gasped as he tried to grab the water bottle he had left on the counter- his hand went right through it. Ash tried again to grip the bottle only to shoot through the wall and end up in Serena's room. "Weird… I must be dreaming," Ash said as he looked around to see Serena and Bonnie sleeping on their own separate ways.

Ash noticed that above Serena there was a cloud that lead to her face, it was as if he could go inside… Ash walked over to be next to Serena's bed and touched the cloud to then make his eyes go to the back of his head to see a room where he saw himself staring at the point of view of the person he was in. "Oh Ash," the voice that sounded like Serena said as the point of view then began to walk towards the raven haired trainer.

"Wait, what?" Ash said as he pulled his hand out in panic to see Serena then cuddle harder against her pillow. "What was that all about?" Ash asked himself as he then noticed that there was a silver link that went through the wall through where he had originally went through. Ash followed the link, completely ignoring what he just saw in the cloud next to Serena and ended up in his room again. "Huh?" Ash asked in an alarmed expression as he then noticed he saw _himself_ in the bed. Ash instantly began to breath hard in dear as he then saw a bright light zoom him towards himself.

Ash's eyes shot open as he looked around. He was still lying with his head facing upwards. Ash just rolled over on his side opposite of Pikachu to avoid squishing the mouse. "I hope I don't do that again," Ash whispered to himself as he fell asleep again.

 **A/N: You guys right now: "Okay, what the actual heck did Ash just do?"**

 **Me: "He just Astral Projected, this is an actual out of body experience (OBE). Keep in mind that the cloud thing was… Well that was made up, lol!"**

 **Anyways, I just want to clarify that this chapter is not so much focused on Ash. I felt like Ash needs his day to train and since it is not the most interesting thing to write, then I will make this chapter more focused on Clemont. Mostly, I just want Clemont to have a bit of a learning day to himself to grow as a gym leader!**

 **Also, why the two day break? You will see!**

 **Without further ado, let's get right into the story!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 41- Electric Inventor vs Electric Life Saver

 **With Ash:**

"PIKA!"

"Whoa!" Ash shouted as he fell back on the concrete below. "Owww…" Ash said as he sat back up on the pavement that was bright because of the sun light. People were walking to and fro the stadium sides and there were stands everywhere. Ash noticed that in front of him was not one, but two Pikachu's looking at each other. Ash looked at the one that clearly was not his because there was a little bit of spiky hair in the front. Ash then noticed both Pikachu's look at him.

"Pikapi," Ash's Pikachu said in worry as he got to Ash's side and checked on the raven haired boy.

"PIKACHU!" The other Pikachu said as he pounced on Ash with a friendly manner.

Ash returned the embrace to then noticed that he also recognized being here before, "Wait, Pika is that you?" Ash asked with a very excited tone.

"Pika!" Pika shouted as he playfully began to run around Ash, who had recognized him. Pikachu was slightly confused and thus got on Ash's shoulder.

"It has been such a long time," Ash said as he pet Pika's fur. Ash then noticed Pika twitch his ears and begin to run in one direction. "Huh? Wait Pika!" Ash then noticed the cloaked man near the other end of the pavement and then watched as Pika walked into the cloak. "Pika… He is my father's Pikachu," Ash said in awe as he saw that. Ash then saw the cloaked man walk towards the pokemon center and then disappear into a corner out of Ash's view. Out of curiosity, Ash went up to get a better look only to be interrupted by a familiar voice:

"Braixen now use fire blast!" Serena shouted as he Braixen performed a large summersault over her. Ash turned the corner just in time to see Braixen launch a jet of elegant fire right towards the honey blonde girl and then make five prongs that then enclosed Serena like a jail cell. "YES!" Serena exclaimed with excitement as she raised her hands and laughed at how amazing her combination was.

"Serena!" Ash shouted in a slightly panicked tone as he ran up towards the honey blonde girl. "You are going to hurt yourself!"

"Huh?" Serena asked as she went wide eyed and noticed exactly that she was trapped in a vortex of fire. Serena did not panic though as she quickly acted: "Brionne use water gun to get rid of this fire!" Serena shouted as she threw a pokeball up towards the blaze. Brionne emerged from the light and instantly began spraying water as Braixen landed next to Serena with a sweat drop as steam began to glow everywhere.

Ash was impressed at how Serena was able to act so fast, especially with how amazing the water vapor looked. "Oh, Ash," Serena gasped as she looked at Ash and slightly blushed, "Thanks for warning me, I could have hurt myself."

Ash did not know how to respond as he got an eyeful of Serena's glimmering sapphire eyes in the steam that was clearing. Ash just put his hands behind his head and said, "No problem Serena, anyways, that performance was really good!"

"Wait, you really think so?" Serena asked with a shy smile.

"Yea! But maybe, I don't know, maybe add in some sort of dark type move to it to probably give it some more of a spooky atmosphere, and with that crooked laugh you just did, you could make an amazing Halloween performance!" Ash responded with his head down and his arms crossed with a grin on his face.

"C-crooked laugh?... You mean like a witch?" Serena asked as she began to fall flat along with her pokemon. "I am supposed to look beautiful during these performances, not like a demon…" Serena said that last part with her arms in her hips.

"What are you talking about, of course you are beautiful!" Ash said with a bright smile before then going wide eyed and making his own face begin to heat up.

"Wait… what?" Serena asked in slight shock as she made her tint of pink develop into shades of dark crimson red.

"N-nothing," Ash said quickly while looking the other way in an attempt to prevent Serena from thinking more of it. Serena noticed this and decided to let the conversation slide to her disappointment, but she then cocked her head as Ash spoke again, clearly having regained his composure. "Serena, do you know where the others are?"

"Bonnie and Brock went out together, something about finding the perfect wife," Serena then pointed towards the stadium and said, "Clemont is alone, he said he wanted to look at something that had to do with the stadium… I don't know, stuff that only he was interested it," Serena finished the last part whole looking back at her pokemon, "I decided that I should train a little, for my next performance."

"You know, I need to train too, isn't that right Pikachu?" Ash asked.

"Pika Pikachu!"

"Alright then," Ash said as he took out his other five pokeballs and threw them into the air to see the flashes of light materialized into his pokemon. "Let's get training!"

 **With Clemont:**

"Amazing," Clemont said in awe as he looked down from the first row of the red seats in the stadium and into the large abyss that was separating the two trainer platforms. Clemont noticed that down the shaft there was a track that below. "So, if they did what I suggested, the field rides on a track sort of like a train, and then it hooks up to the vertical tracks that go up towards the trainer's platform and then lock in place with an attempt to safely secure the field into position." Clemont then smiled as he looked down at the field and gave a hearty laugh, "I sure hope this invention of mine does not explode, that would be amazing if it did… But dangerous too."

Clemont then looked into the field and decided to head back up to the exit of the empty stands. On the way, he passed under a small tunnel that lead towards the dugout. Seemingly admiring the hexagonal shaped hallways as they were illuminated with bright blue lights. Clemont then turned to his left to see a monitor with the shape of Prism Tower in the middle along with a six trophies. "Isn't that the same symbol I designed?" Clemont asked in awe as he looked at the symbol. He clearly was not expecting his own design to be implemented at all.

Clemont turned the corner and then noticed that there was the dugout to one of the tunnels that lead out to the trainer platform. Out of curiosity, Clemont went up the stairs and began to walk towards the light. "So this is what it is like being a competitor," Clemont said as he covered his glasses with his hands at the sight of entering the field. Looking around, Clemont saw the amazing view of the stadium and all of the red seats thus imagining what it would be like if there was people sitting there and there was an opponent.

"Man, I wish I could compete."

"Jolteon!"

"Huh?" Clemont's attention was brought to the front of him to see a teenager about his age standing in the opposite trainer's platform with a Jolteon next to him. He noticed the black and blue attire on the boy with blue eyes and a blue outline around his hair. Clemont then spoke up, "Hey, what are you doing here? The stadium is off limits."

The boy, who was looking around, looked at Clemont and chuckled, "I could be asking the same thing to you too."

Clemont instantly froze up. He had forgotten that the stadium was to not be accessed by anyone during days when there was a break. "Uhhh…" Clemont then made his best excuse, "I am the main designer of the blue prints of this place."

"Oh," the teenager said as he began to look around with a sheepish look. "Guess I should be on my way then," the boy said as he turned around and began to leave.

"Wait!" Clemont shouted only to know that there was no avail because of the distance. "Oh man…" Clemont then began to turn around and run to the best of his ability through the dugout and reach the stairs only to be met with the same person in front of him. "Wait… How did you?"

"I can run," the boy said sheepishly as he eyed Clemont. "And I am guessing that you are just very slow."

"I guess," Clemont said with a sheepish laugh as he noticed an emergency exit and headed for it signaling the boy to come through. The spiky haired teenager followed with his Jolteon close behind him as they stepped back into the light of the sun shine that was previously at the stadium's main battling area. "Why did you even come this way?"

"Because I heard you shouting after me," The boy said simply as his Jolteon circled around him to eye Clemont curiously.

"Yes, well… I noticed you looked like a person that is an electric specialist," Clemont said as he looked back down at the Jolteon and fixed his glasses. "I was wondering if you would like to have a battle with me."

"A battle?" The boy said as he put a hand to his chin and then shrugged his shoulders. "Why not? It could be good practice, right Jolteon?"

"Teon!"

"Alright, well, where should we have it?" The boy asked as he looked around. Clemont just motioned to a practice battlefield that was on the side of the walkway and then both of them began to walk towards it, standing on opposite trainer boxes. The boy then chuckled as he said, "I probably should introduce myself, my name is Night."

'Night… I have heard that name before…' Clemont said as he then opened his mouths and said: "I am Clemont, honored to meet you." Clemont then took out a pokeball and threw it towards the battlefield, "Luxray, you are up!"

"Luxray!" Luxray shouted as he emerged from his pokeball and stood in front of Jolteon who Night had signaled to go out to battle.

"Luxray… wait, by any chance are you also an electric type specialist?" Night asked curiously.

Clemont smirked as he looked at Night and adjusted the glare of his glasses, "I am the Lumiose City Gym Leader, and yes, I do specialize in electric type while being an inventor."

Night then smirked back, "Same way, but I like to consider myself a health care provider, you see, health care has always fascinated me as a person, speed is everything in an emergency, so that is why I always love using fast and speedy pokemon like Jolteon here."

"Jolteon!"

"Inventing takes time, I like to specialize on slower pokemon because it reflects my slow and steady inventing," Clemont said. "I can see now that there is a good amount of differences between us, but we have the same passion in electric types."

Night smiled as he bent his knees and pumped his fists at his side, "Let's learn more about the differences in our passions through battle."

"Agreed!"

 **Battle music begin! Clemont (Luxray) vs Night (Jolteon):**

Clemont adjusted the glare of his glasses as he then put his arm out in front of him, "Luxray start things off with electric terrain!"

"Luxray!" Luxray cried as he roared and then made himself generate electricity in his mane before delivering it out in all directions. The electricity then surged the field around Luxray and Jolteon and at times, sparks crackle around the field. Clemont smirked at this as he commanded for a wild charge. At this Night narrowed his eyes as he watched Luxray become enveloped in an aura of electricity while headed towards Jolteon.

Night pumped his fist as he put an arm out and shouted: "Jolteon use your speed to get behind Luxray!" Clemont flinched as at the moment that Luxray was about to slam into Jolteon, the electric type disappeared to then appear with a large cloud of dust behind Luxray who was extremely confused as to where Jolteon was. "Use Shadow Ball!" Night exclaimed as he noticed that Jolteon was charging up an attack.

"Counter it with swift!" Clemont shouted urgently as he watched the ghost type move come close to his electric lion. Although slower, Luxray managed to swing around his tail and launch a barrage of stars that interacted with the Shadow Ball and caused smoke to pick up above the field, but then out of surprise, a barrage of electricity came from the cloud and slammed into Luxray who staggered a little to then fall to the ground as if he has been battling for ages now. "Luxray!" Clemont shouted in panic as he noticed how his electric type slowly and weakly stood back up.

"Ray…" the lion moaned as he lowered his head and began to growl at the spiked cheetah in front of him.

"Night, how did you do that?" Clemont asked with curiosity.

"Engaging to then provoke you was a great way for me to land a surprise attack," Night replied as he looked over at Jolteon and put his hands in his pockets. "Jolteon and I are full of surprises, that is how we managed to defeat the Tunod Conference."

"Wait… are you saying that you are a…" Clemont stammered with his words.

"Champion?" Night finished with an extended eyebrow. "You can put it that way, but I am no traditional champion." Night then looked up and smirked, "Thunder!" Jolteon jumped into the air and with a quick reel of his head began to launch an attack of electricity that Clemont knew all too well from his experiences as a gym leader. The lightning bolt streaked through the air on its way to Luxray who was watching in awe as the attack neared him.

Luxray then acted fast as a mirage image of Clemont made an order: "Make a dust cloud with your feet!"

"Ray!" Luxray shouted as he stopped his feet and made a dust cloud that quickly dispersed the electricity away, but the fact was that the electric terrain still let some of the attack through this causing Luxray to stagger back and scratch his paws across the dirt as he skidded to a stop in front of Clemont.

"Jolteon, let's try something different!" Night declared as he pointed forward and issued forward his fist. "Use hidden power!"

"Teon!" Jolteon shouted as he made a battle cry that instead of launching spheres of energy, made a shockwave that formed a barrage of ice stones towards Luxray. At this Clemont nearly had the wind knocked out of him clearly not expecting such an attack. Clemont was still fast in making his command and called out for a dodge. Luxray was not extremely successful in dodging all of the rocks, but he managed to only get hit once, but that hit still caused a lot of damage to happen to the electric lion as he landed in front of Clemont.

'What am I going to do against a champion?' Clemont thought as a drop of sweat went down his cheek as he grit his teeth. Clemont then adjusted his glasses and out his hand forward while saying, "Luxray, use wild charge!"

"Gonna do the same move again?" Night asked as he put his hand forward towards the rushing Luxray enveloped in an electric aura. "Use Shadow Ball and knock it off balance!" Jolteon charged up the attacks on his mouth and launched them in the direction of Luxray only for Clemont to smirk:

"Thunder fang!"

"RAY!" Luxray shouted as he destroyed the ball of shadow energy into an explosion of dust from which Luxray emerged coated in electricity about to slam into Jolteon.

Night saw this and then looked around to see the electric terrain and then raised his hand, "Jump into the air and then follow it up with thunder right on Luxray!"

"Jol JOLTEEEEEOOONNNN!" Jolteon shouted as he jumped to be above Luxray at a blinding speed. Jolteon then made an electric charge shock in the direction of Luxray. Clemont's electric type was just in the way of Jolteon's attack and the young inventor knew that he had to do something.

"Use wild charge!" Clemont shouted while pumping his fist. Luxray made himself glow in an electric aura and as the thunder collided, the wild charge absorbed most of the electricity that was being issued towards Luxray.

"Impressive," Night said as Jolteon landed in front of him. Night then narrowed his eyes as he then declared his final attack: "You are worthy of this… JOLTEON!" Jolteon nodded as he prepared himself by absorbing the electricity from the electric terrain with a large flash. Clemont shielded his eyes as he saw this and then looked in awe as Night then pointed his fists forward and shouted: " _Sinister Current_!"

"JOLLLL!" Jolteon began as he began to glow blue and black while making the electricity around him to make five dark blue orbs that went around Luxray. Clemont did not know what to do as he witnessed how Luxray was completely trapped. "TTTTEEEEEEOOOONNNN!" Jolteon shouted as the electricity from the orbs discharged into a giant wall of electricity that engulfed Luxray into a dark blue crackling fest of power. At this, an explosion echoed through the practice field that made Clemont and Night both have to cover themselves from the shock wave caused by the blast.

"Luxray!" Clemont yelled in extreme shock as he saw the smoke clear and was unable to tell the condition of his pokemon.

"Ray…" Luxray grunted on the ground with scratches all over himself. Clemont noticed that Luxray had gone through so much and raced to get on Luxray's side to take care of him.

"Luxray, you were excellent," Clemont praised as Night came up in front of him and also kneeled down with a berry in his hand.

"Here Luxray, have this," Night said as he fed the berry to Luxray. The electric lion swallowed the berry to then begin to move around much easier. "Take it easy Luxray, I am surprised you even stayed conscious after that attack," Night said as he turned to Clemont and said: "Luxray will be fine, he just needs to have some rest to recover." Night then looked back down at Luxray and stroke his mane with care as he then said, "He is well trained, for being a gym leader's pokemon, I have never seen such a well trained pokemon. Also, you gave me a good challenge after everything, you managed to take some of my attacks and still avoided getting knocked out sooner. Also, the fact Luxray stayed conscious the last attack is something that I rarely see."

Clemont was dumbfounded by the words of Night to then look down with a shy smile and say, "Thank you, I think I now know what it takes to make me a better gym leader. I also think I know a good path to take along side my Luxray to make a closer bond with him." At this, Clemont raised Luxray's pokeball and recalled that electric type back to red energy. "Thank you so much Luxray."

"Teon!" Jolteon shouted as he then signaled for Night in a certain direction.

Night looked on to see Hunter and Leaf walking together outside of the pokemon center while talking with Ash and Serena. Night eyed Serena with awe as he and Clemont went over to see what was going on between Leaf and Hunter. "Leaf, Hunter, what is with you guys now?" Night asked as he reached the group. The spiky haired trainer was sneaking glances towards Serena with a nervous motivation, suddenly realization hit him like a train when he saw Serena call out his with the others.

"Night!" Everyone in the group shouted as Night chuckled a little as Clemont came up behind the spiky haired boy with the Jolteon, there was a slight bit of disappointment in Night's inside because it seemed like Serena hadn't really thought much of seeing him for the first time in a while… Only, Night knew why Serena was so familiar to him and he was expecting Serena to feel the same way instantly too.

"Hunter, Leaf, where are you two going from here?" Night asked as he turned his attention back towards the electric pokemon and watched Jolteon and Eevee exchange a playful smile with each other.

"Leaf and I decided to go travel around Johto," Hunter said. "We want to embark on our journey together and when I win the Johto League, I will challenge you to a battle, Night." At the last part Hunter pumped his fist as Leaf chuckled from behind.

"You got it," Night said as he pumped his fist back in a friendly way towards Hunter.

"Alright guys, I guess we are now going to be on our way," Hunter said as he turned to a nodding Leaf. "I will see you guys soon!"

"Bye!" Leaf shouted as she left behind Hunter. Eevee also shared one last goodbye with Jolteon and Pikachu as he then ran up to Hunter's shoulder and waved good bye with the duo as they walked off.

As the others waved, Serena smiled, "Do you think that Leaf and Hunter will recognize what they feel for each other?"

"Huh?" Ash and Clemont asked cluelessly as Serena face palmed.

Night though, he chuckled as he thought of a way to hint having similar blood to Serena by saying: "When they are mature enough, Leaf will probably make a move, she is that impulsive." Serena went wide eyed that someone actually understood her and carefully eyed Night… Only for the spiky haired boy to look back at Serena and motion his head towards Ash: This motion made Serena's face instantly become a tomato, so she started back towards the now setting sun and watched as Hunter and Leaf disappeared over the horizon. "I hope to see them again soon," Night said as he saw his friends leave only to then sigh as he saw the setting sun and share a serious glance with Jolteon.

"Wait… Are you going to return to your champion duties Night?" Clemont asked that caused the attention of the other two teenagers to go to Night.

Night smiled as he said the next part: "I have some business to take care of here in Kalos before I return to the Soul Stadium," Night replied as he and Jolteon began to walk away from the group. "I hope to see you guys again," Night said as he began to walk away towards the pokemon center.

"He's interesting…" Clemont said with a surprised tone as he looked at Night walk in through the automatic doors.

"He is a very strong trainer, that is for sure," Ash replied as he looked at Pikachu on his shoulder and smirked.

"I feel like I know him," Serena muttered as she remembered the sight of Night being at close proximity of her just then. It was as if she knew there was a lost connection between Serena and him. Serena did not think much of it, but this is something that sooner or later will affect her more than anything…

"Let's get back to the hotel, it has been a long day and I am expecting Bonnie and Brock to be back home… With some girls for me," at the last part Clemont face palmed with a slight amount of nerves.

"Come on Clemont, maybe one is very beautiful," Serena implied as the group started walking away from the direction of the pokemon center.

Ash walked next to the two as he snuck a glance at Serena and watched how the setting sun made a radiant shine in the figure of the honey blonde girl. Ash could not help, but gasp and shake his head at the thought. 'Maybe I am just getting sick' Ash thought as he kept walking, only to still find his eyes leaning towards the girl he was next to.

"Pika?" Pikachu asked from the shoulder of the raven haired trainer as he noticed Ash acting so strangely. Looking ahead at the line of Ash's sight, Pikachu saw Serena as she lead the group. Pikachu grew wide eyed as he saw this, but snickered into his hand knowing that something is going on with Ash that involved Serena…

 _Like if he was zinged to her._

 **At the Pokemon Center:**

"Nurse Joy," Night said as he and Jolteon walked up to the counter and looked at the nurse.

Nurse Joy turned her head to see Night and Jolteon walking next to each other, Jolteon looking a little roughed up from his last battle. "Hello there, welcome to the pokemon center, how may I help you?"

Night smiled as he looked down at Jolteon and said, "I was wondering if you wanted to take a little break and let me rest the other pokemon for you, I was going to do it for Jolteon, but I felt generous…" Night trailed off at the next part while scratching his cheek. "I need to keep practicing so that I can be a lot better at my job when I get older."

Nurse Joy seemed a little unsure, but she smiled and nodded. Night nearly jumped for Joy as he ran into the clinic and noticed that there was a line of pokemon beds with some pokemon on them. They were pokemon from trainers at the Kalos League and Night knew that he could get straight to work. "Jolteon? Jol Jolteon?" Jolteon asked as he leaped onto one of the beds as Night got next to him with a potion.

"Alright Jolteon, let me fix you up from that battle," Night said as he took out a potion and began to spray Jolteon, who was feeling very nice thanks to the effects of the potion. The small nicks that Jolteon had all over his body slowly disappeared as Night continued spraying. When he was done spraying, he fed Jolteon some berries and took his vital signs that proved to be in phenomenal shape. "Jolteon, your body temperature is normal, your blood pressure is very strong and high because you are a fast electric type… And your pulse." Night then put a stethoscope up to Jolteon's thoracic area and listened, "You are running a pulse of 600 beats per minute, which is healthy for a fast pokemon like you." Jolteon leaped out of the bed happily as Night then took out a pokeball. "Alright Decidueye, I need you to help me with something."

"Dueye!" Decidueye said with a sinister voice as he looked around and examined the room he was in.

"Remember your training, use your strong vision to locate any hidden complications on any of these pokemon," Night instructed as the archer owl began to walk around the clinic as Jolteon also hopped on the beds to check on a Pachirisu that was on the bed nearest to Night. Jolteon gave a slight electric shock to the electric squirrel and then smiled as he hopped into the next bed to see a Bunnelby. The bunny pokemon also reacted in a way that made Jolteon smile as Night looked over a Growlithe that was breathing hard. "Wow, looks like he is short of breath," Night said as he looked at the shallow breathing of the fire type. "Jolteon hand me some oxygen," Night commanded as he began to check the heart rate with the stethoscope.

"Jolteon!" Jolteon said as he handed Night an oxygen mask which the larger trainer inserted on the snout of the pokemon. Night then went over to the oxygen control and began administering air that was more oxygen rich than the air around him. Night and Jolteon watched as Growlithe's breathing slowed down to be normal to other pokemon, which made the black and blue attired trainer to be relieved.

"Dueye!" Decidueye cried out getting the attention of Night and Jolteon, who were instantly on Decidueye's side to see what was on the bed. Looking down, Night saw a steel and dark type that had an axe like head, red and black armor along with white blades that stuck out around his body. Looking closer, Night noticed that this pokemon had sparks around him sometimes appearing along with a small burn mark on the trunk of this pokemon.

Night went wide eyed seeing the condition of this pokemon and turned to his pokemon, "We need an antidote and I am going to need some water as well." His two pokemon nodded as Night looked back down at the pokemon and said: "Don't worry Pawniard, we will help you."

"Niard…" Pawniard grunted in pain.

"Teon!"

"Decidueye!"

Night thanked both pokemon as he took the antidote and instantly began to spray it on the Pawniard. The dark and steel type pokemon began to feel alleviated as the sparks went away and the burn mark began to disappear. At that moment, Night then grabbed the cup of water out of Deciduye's hands and then put it up to Pawniard's mouth for him to drink. "Drink up and you will feel better," Night said as Pawniard slumped back down on the bed and fell asleep after drinking up all of the water. Night smiled as he saw this and then recalled Decidueye to then walk out of the clinic with Jolteon.

Outside the clinic, Nurse Joy waited and asked Night how things went inside. "It went well," Night explained as he began to walk towards the door. "Also, make sure that Pawniard stays out of trouble, it looked like he was badly injured." At this Nurse Joy smiled as Night walked out. It was dark out now, and the night sky seemed to make the stars pop and then moon shone at the first quarter as they met the pavement of the walkway that was nearly completely dark due to the stadium not being used for the day, granted that the monitors were on as they displayed matchups and different highlights from the day prior.

Night and Jolteon walked through the darkness and ended up sitting down in the bench that was illuminated by a street lamp. Night sighed as he heard something out of the corner of his eye and out loud said, "I was not expecting of running into Serena again, after all these years…"

"I know, you must have missed her," A familiar voice emerged from the shadows as it neared Night. Night chuckled a little recognizing the voice as he looked in the direction of where it had originated.

"Ashura, why is it that you are always right?" Night asked towards the figure that then sat down next to him to be Ashura. This time, he did not have his cloak with him and was in his usual red outfit as he looked at Night. "You are probably here to talk to me about what this means for Serena and me, right?"

"Yes," Ashura said calmly. "This is something that only Serena and you can do," Ashura explained as he sighed. "Tony is my best friend, but ever since he left with you and then left you to complete your journey, it is time that Serena and you go and find him… And allow her to learn that truth about her father."

"Are you sure my _sister_ is up for it?" Night asked unsurely.

"She has been following my son this whole time," Ashura said with a sincere voice. "I know your sister has some sort of a thing for my son, so keep in mind that she will use his morals and values to get through."

"I guess you are right," Night said as he held Jolteon close. "Anyone else that we will be accompanied with?" Night asked with a curious face.

"I have an idea of who," Ashura said. "He is from Alola though, so I recommend you and Serena head there first." Ashura then stood back up and was about to leave Night and Jolteon alone as Ashura then said: "I want to let Serena watch my son battle during the league, it will help her in the long run, for now, keep an eye on any suspicious activity around here. I will come back to you soon," Ashura said as he left the light and went into the shadows.

Night sighed as he looked at Jolteon and said, "Should I pay a visit to mom as well? Oh man it has been so long, will she even recognize me? Serena didn't so that is really not giving me the best chances," Night conceited that last part with slight regret.

"Jolteon!" Jolteon cried as he snuggled on Night thus making him comfortable.

"Yea," Night said. "Let's go to sleep so that we can get ready for surveillance." Night stood up and began to walk away only for the monitors to turn on and display matchup for the day that made Night narrow his eyes in curiosity.

The television portrayed Damian commanding his Hydreigon and then defeating a Skarmory with his Darmanitan. Later, it showed Ash's highlights against Hunter and Hau along with portraying the large potential of Ash's team. "The third match of the quarter finals will include Ash and Damian as they face off against each other for a spot in the semi finals!" Night narrowed his eyes as he looked at the referee from the highlights of Damian's battles and was shocked to see the same referee that Nero had used against Hunter.

"Alright then," Night said as he squinted his eyes and looked forward. "If someone can beat that bastard it has to be Ash… If Hunter can defeat one of his goons, then Ash can take down the ringmaster." Night then turned to Jolteon before walking towards the darkness while muttering, "But that referee… Jolteon, shoot a thunder into the sky, because he is ours!"

"Jolteon!" Jolteon agreed as he launched a jolt of yellow electricity up into the air, thus causing a bright light that illuminated the darkness over the lights of Lumiose City.

 **A/N: Plot twist! Serena and Night have the same blood! Why? Well, things will be revealed soon enough. The main reason why I had to relate them is so that there is no shipping controversy… And also because it will make things more dramatic.**

 **Anyways, Ash is still dazed about his newly found feelings, it is as if he cannot see Serena the same way that she was before! What's better is that there are some catalysts going around, and it might speed up the chemistry.**

 **Ash against Damian? Oh god… This is going to be an intense battle in my book, I can already see the tension building up between the two trainers and I am scared that Ash may not be able to teach that jag his deserved lesson.**

 **Anyways, I am going to call it a day for me, been writing this chapter late at night and I am extremely tired.**

 **I hope you guys enjoyed! Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **ArmorshippingFan: Glad you enjoyed and thanks for reviewing! Means a lot!**

 **NinjaFang1331: Thanks, hope you enjoyed it and let's see how Ash fairs in the Top 8!**

 **Guest 1: Haha he is very arrogant now that I think about it, but the battles and the weeb music are just the minimal of what you can enjoy, in the top 8 (since Ash advanced to it and I don't want to spoil too much), trying to visualize the battle will make it like if you are actually watching the anime ;)!**

 **LanaishAiden: Actually there is no spoil to that, she is not becoming UB-01, but she is going through a medical condition that makes her look that way, nothing much, I just wanted to give her a different appearance in order to separate Lillie from the anime and the games, this Lillie is the Lillie from my story!**

 **Guest 2: Glad you enjoyed and that we can all still support Amourshipping! Am proud of that man!**


	42. Chapter 42

**At the alley way:**

Damian was standing there with his arms crossed waiting for someone as he looked up at the night sky over him. It was something that he was not expecting as he looked onto the side of the alley seeing a person with a cloaked owl like pokemon and a Jolteon standing at the other side. "Up to no good once again?" The other teenager asked as he began to walk towards Damian.

Damian grabbed a pokeball from him belt with slight intimidation as he watched the person approach him, "Step back, or I will use my force against you," Damian hissed with a clearly menacing voice that was trying to make the teenager feel threatened as he threw the pokeball in front of him.

The pokeball flashed light as it summoned a large dark and dragon type with three heads that resembled a hydra. The boy did not flinch as the large dragon made his battle cry which echoed through the alley and could be heard throughout the entire hexagonal stadium area. "DREIGON!" Hydreigon cried as he charged up a dragon shaped beam and launched it towards the other boy with the shape of a dragon threatening to engulf the trio ahead of Damian.

"Decidueye slay the dragon with spirit shackle!" The boy in a blue attire called out as he put his arm out. Damian could barely react as he witnessed the hooded owl launch a purple arrow from his vines towards the dragon and cause an explosion which made Damian flinch as the smoke covered him. Damian then looked on in shock as he intimidatingly recalled Hydreigon back to its pokeball.

"What was that all about?" Damian asked as he put the pokeball back in his belt only to look up and see a bolt of dark blue lightning tear across the sky with a large crackle of thunder which made Damian look up with narrowed eyes.

"Damian?" Damian turned around to see Rob walking towards him with a confused look on his face. "I heard the explosion, what happened?"

"Some guy," Damian said with a smirk as he looked onto Rob. "You have the things I ordered, right?"

"Yes," Rob responded as he reached into his pocket and pulled out two stones. It was a blue stone with a DNA symbol on it along with a small stone that Damian reached for and put it on his pocket. Rob smirked as he then handed the blue stone towards Damian, the latter smiling even brighter. "You will beat that pipsqueak like always, right Damian?"

"Of course," Damian said as he turned his back on Rob and began to walk away. "With you being the referee, there is no way that I will lose." At this Damian disappeared into the darkness of the night in front of him while Rob turned and began to walk the other way.

Rob smirked a little as he remembered the plan: _Allow illegal attacks against Ash._

It was simple, Rob knew very well what Damian's team was, he knew that Damian would want the advantage in order to win the battle. For that, the two had planned to know beforehand which battlefields were to be used for the battle. Rob walked down towards the side of the stadium, looked both ways, and noticed the entrance to the stadium. Looking both ways and noticing the coast was clear, Rob snuck himself into the hexagonal event center.

"OK, now where is it?" Rob asked as he walked through the hexagonal hallways of the stadium. There, Rob walked deeper and deeper into the heart of darkness of the dimly lit stadium hallways to find an obscure door leading towards the controls for the battlefields. "Bingo!"

Rob walked in to find the controls completely lacking security. With that, he looked on to see a carousel of battlefields on a track. Looking up the carousel, he noticed that the arena where both dugouts would be joined by a battlefield.

Right now, it was set to an ice battlefield, meaning that the first match of the quarter finals would be using the ice field for the first half. Rob took his time to walk around the tracks and counting the battlefields that were in order until he reached the fifth and sixth. "Damian will have the third match, this means that the fifth and sixth will be the battlefields for the match."

Rob then looked at the two fields and narrowed his eyes. "A forest and a dessert…" Rob then smirked. "I gotta tell Damian, this will be easier than ever for him to win." Rob then turned around to walk towards the door. Going through, Rob opened and closed the door to then begin to walk away.

But:

As soon as the door closed, the same black a blue attired teenager was waiting on the other side of the door: Right leg on the wall of the hallway while looking down right in front of him. The Jolteon was there, he was growling in the direction that Rob went.

"So, he thinks that playing it this way is how you win a battle," the boy said as he stepped into the hallway. He then looked up with a serious face towards the way that Rob went and narrowed his eyes while he had his hands in his pockets. "I don't want to be involved in shenanigans that have to do with the league, but if I have to intervene, so be it."

"Jolteon!"

"Alright Jolteon, let's get ready for another day," The boy said looking down at his spiky electric type, who nodded at the proposal. Both trainer and pokemon then began to walk away from the direction Rob came from.

 **A/N: So we now know that it will be Ash against Damian in the quarter finals of the Kalos League. Keep in mind that Damian is not planning in holding back, and he definitely wants to ultimately embarrass Ash in front of everyone.**

 **Tough battle, there is a lot at stake, but if I have to say something about the matchup, why say it here when I say it at the end of the chapter? Yup, another Ash and Night encounter, let's see what happens.**

 **Anyways, I have nothing more to say, see you at the bottom:**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 42- Taking A Stand!

 **Ash's room that morning:**

Ash and Pikachu were smiling at each other as the duo walked towards Brock's room. "Brock?" Ash asked as he knocked. Hearing no response, Ash opened the door to have his mouth hang agape: Clemont and Brock were on the ground covered in soot groaning. "Guys! What happened?"

"He… Did…" Brock said lethargically as he pointed at Clemont with a shaking hand before collapsing.

Clemont breathed smoke as he adjusted his glasses: "If I only set the machine to the correct settings."

"Pika…"

"Clemont! Squishy is-" Bonnie popped in through the door and instantly put her hands on her hips with a scolding attitude. "Clemont, I told you not to blow up any inventions here! Room service will have a hard time cleaning and they will charge us so much!"

"Nenne!" Dennene said with a similar attitude to her trainer.

Serena at that moment came up behind the lemon haired girl only to sweat drop at the sight in front of her and a shrugging Ash. "Uhhh… Well, guys, I think we should go get some breakfast."

As if on queue, Ash's stomach began to make a large growling noise that everyone knew instantly, was him. Everyone laughed at that as Ash sighed, "I think my stomach agrees with Serena, I think it is settled then!" At that, Ash and Pikachu burst out the door and headed towards the elevator with Ash yelling towards the others, "Come on! I am starving!"

"And you better not invent anything else," Bonnie said as she carried her two pokemon out and towards the elevator with Ash as Serena walked behind her. Brock got up and shook of the soot to then follow the others, but Clemont remained motionless on the ground.

"Wait, for me!" Clemont replied as he shook off his soot and followed the group out the door.

 **At the walkway with Mairin:**

"Look Chespie!" Mairin said as she held her Chespin close to her chest. The red haired girl was walking through the block to find a stand that had some Chespin figurines being sold for a couple Kaleuros. "Wow, they are amazing, Chespie, do you like the one that looks like you?" Mairin asked as she eyed the figurines closely. One clearly resembled the Chespin she had close to her.

"Ches Chespin!" Chespie cried with excitement as he jumped down from Mairin's hands and began to run off into the crowd of people swarming the plaza.

"Wait, Chespie!" Mairin called out as she ran off after her beloved Chespie. She had remembered when she first received the pokemon from Professor Sycamore, it was one of the most amazing choices in her life when she chose Chespie to be her partner, she could still remember the moment that Chespie nodded to her in agreement with a sense of adventure. "Huh?" Mairin asked as she noticed a boy with blue hair and dark sunglasses on his head. At the same time, Mairin saw how he was talking with someone of red hair and a black suit. The woman had a crew of camera men that were filming as the woman held a microphone up to the boy's mouth.

"Well," Damian's voice could be heard as he smirked and looked on into the microphone. "Tomorrow I will completely blow him out of the park, that is what my plan is. After that, I am going to win the league." Damian was then thanked by the interviewer to then bump into Mairin and send her rolling into the ground.

"Ches… PIN!" Chespie shouted as he quickly reacted and shot his vines out to grab the falling red head. As soon as Chespie got ahold of Mairin's torso, he balanced her on the ground to make it so that she was not falling anymore. "Ches pin pin ches ches pin!" Chespie cried with irritation towards Damian, who looked like he gave no care to Mairin.

"Get out of my way," Damian said as he walked past the duo with a sense of annoyance towards the girl that was in front of him. Damian then walked past the crowd and Mairin grabbed ahold of Chespie with her arms.

"If only someone would stand up to him," Mairin said as she narrowed her eyes. "Bullies like them deserve nothing after everything they do."

 **With Ash and the others:**

"Ash, are you gonna use Ash-Greninja yet?" Bonnie asked eagerly as she sat across from Ash, who was sitting in between Brock and Clemont. Serena, who was next to Bonnie, sighed as she smiled at the little girl.

"Ash may use him, but it might be best to let him decide," The honey blonde haired girl said as she looked at Ash and smiled shyly.

"Not yet Bonnie," Ash said with a wink as he then felt his hand beneath the table and put a hand over his keystone to feel the circumference of the stone, "I think it is time someone got his ultimate battle," Ash muttered under his breath as he looked over at Bonnie, who clearly did not hear what Ash said.

"Aww…. No fair," Bonnie pouted as she grabbed a mouthful of sushi with her chopsticks and put it in her mouth while pouting.

"Anyways, are you excited for the battle tomorrow, Ash?" Clemont asked nervously as he looked at the raven haired trainer and his electric rodent. "You said that up until now, you have not been able to defeat Damian in battle."

Ash smiled under his scarf and then looked at Clemont with narrowed eyes while saying, "This time, things will be different." Ash then looked at his hand and crumpled it into a fist: "I am going to finally prove to him that I have everything it takes." Ash then looked towards Pikachu and said: "Isn't that right Pikachu?"

"Pika!" Pikachu cooed as he snuggled with his trainer for a little bit, which Ash enjoyed.

"What's gonna be your strategy, Ash?" Brock asked curiously as he took a sip from his drink. The black haired trainer was very confused as to what Ash would attempt, specially when there was no other different strategy he could use with just using the same six pokemon in every battle.

Ash just sighed as he closed his fists and sighed, he did not really know what he would do. He knew that up until now, he had nothing on Damian, and it was clear to him that this battle would probably end the same way. Ash just stammered with his words: "N-Nothing, I am probably going to have to make a new one if I am going to win this battle."

Serena and Brock found this answer odd as they exchanged a nervous glance. They both knew first hand how much of a burden Ash had with Damian, and it was clear that they knew that Ash would have to use everything he had if he was to win. It was clearly a very tight spot for Ash, and Ash felt nervous about it as well as he felt an electric shock from Pikachu touch his cheek, "Pika?" Pikachu asked in slight worry.

"Huh? Oh, it is nothing Pikachu," Ash said as he faked a smile and hugged Pikachu close to his chest.

Serena still did not feel very comfortable with how Ash was behaving, because she knew her crush was hiding something. Clearly, something was off with Ash, and she felt that maybe it had to do with Damian possible winning. "Guys, how about we go play some games around the plaza, it would be very fun," Serena suggested as she tried to get Ash's mind out of Damian.

"Yea, it sounds like fun!" Bonnie chanted as she stood up from her chair. "Come on guys!" Bonnie shouted as she dragged Clemont out of his seat and towards some of the stands. Clemont gasped as he felt himself being dragged by a strong force.

"Wait for me," Brock said as he came up behind the duo.

Serena began to get up, but she then stopped in her tracks and looked out of the corner of his eye, "Ash, you coming?" Serena asked as she felt Pikachu get on her shoulder. "The others are wanting you to defeat the quiz again."

"Huh?" Ash was snapped out of his own thoughts to see Serena looking at him from the side. "Oh, yea, I am coming," Ash replied as he felt his heart beat a little from talking on his own to Serena. He was nervous, he had to admit it, but he still felt more nervous as he talked to the girl in front of him that was now walking towards the others with a bright smile that Ash could tell contained many powerful emotions. Deciding it was best to go with him, Ash got up and walked towards the others who were waiting for him patiently.

 **With Professor Sycamore:**

"Diantha," Professor Sycamore said as he approached the Kalos champion from behind. "What do you think about the battles?"

Turning around, Diantha saw as Professor Sycamore had just came up from behind her in the trainer lounge disclosed from the public. Seeing this, Diantha smiled as she said: "They have been interesting, already see a potential winner though."

"Satoshi?" Professor Sycamore asked knowingly. At this Diantha nodded as Professor Sycamore sighed, "You might be right, but I don't think some trainers here will go down without a fight. Specially some of the ones you have been keeping a close eye on."

"You might be right Augustine," Diantha replied as she looked out a window that portrayed a view of the hexagonal stadium and the arena below. "As of now, we have to keep everyone safe, we must avoid any possible threat coming to be a menace for us."

"What are you talking about?" Professor Sycamore asked curiously only to hear a new voice behind him.

"Team Flare."

Professor Sycamore turned around to see the spiky haired trainer with his Jolteon standing there with an alarmed expression. "You must be Night," Professor Sycamore said with a genuine smile as he shook Night's hand. "It is an honor to meet you, but what is Team Flare up to?"

"I don't know," Diantha said with a worried expression. "But I do know that we need to keep an eye out… Lysandre is their ring master."

"Lysandre?" Professor Sycamore asked in an alarmed expression. "How can you be so sure?"

Diantha froze a little, but at the thought she took the piece of paper she took from Lysandre that night. In it, she showed Professor Sycamore about plans to act a siege on the league.

"Are you sure that this is legitimate?" Professor Sycamore asked as Night looked over his shoulder.

"I already encountered Lysandre, I can tell you that he is definitely up to something," Night replied as he crossed his arms. "It seems as if he is waiting for the perfect time to strike, the moment everyone is the most vulnerable."

"Night is right," Diantha said as she put a hand to her chin. "If they are up to something, we have to keep the entire place protected." Diantha then smiled as she looked at Night and Professor Sycamore. "The good thing is that we have two champions ready to stop anything from happening!"

"That's right," Night agreed as he turned to Professor Sycamore. "Professor, are you also willing to lend us a hand?"

"I will do what I can," Professor Sycamore said genuinely. Suddenly, the black haired man in a lab coat turned around and went out the door while saying: "I have to go check on Mairin, I left her to wander around unsupervised, I am afraid that she got herself into some trouble." Professor Sycamore then waved as he began to walk away from the duo who was now standing next to each other with Jolteon sitting under Night.

"Diantha, I will keep a look out as well, something else has had my attention for a while as well," Night said as he began to walk away towards the door with Jolteon following close behind. "Also…" Night turned around and put a slightly grossed out face: "Why did you make out with him?"

Diantha chuckled nervously as she turned her way with the keystone on her necklace interacting with the light and causing it to gleam. "I actually did not plan to, but it was the opportunity for me to find the reason he was asking to spectate the league matches." Diantha then put a hand to her chin, "He is probably very interested in one of the challengers."

"I will keep that into account," Night declared as he and Jolteon walked out the door after his salutations. Diantha then stood with a pensive tone, one thought running through her mind: 'Why is Lysandre here?'

 **With Ash and the others:**

Ash had ultimately crushed the ring toss game. It was "luck" was all the raven haired trainer claimed as he buried his mouth into his scarf. It was something that Serena found extremely adorable, regardless, Serena still found the raven haired trainer seeming to be "off" his usual attitude, like he was feeling uneasy about something. Every so often, Serena would catch Ash spacing out, and at worst times, Pikachu would give a light voltage shock just to get him to snap out of it.

"Ash, be careful, you could trip," Brock warned as he looked at the way that the blue jacket wearing boy was moving around in a manner that resembled a zombie. The others also found it extremely awkward, but Ash looked up with his brown eyes flashing from the gleam of the sun.

"Huh?" Ash questioned as he looked ahead. "O-oh, yea, I will Brock, don't worry."

Ash still felt uneasy, but that was something that was about to change:

"Hey look!" Bonnie pointed out. "Isn't that Damian right there?" Everyone turned their heads to a monitor that displayed Malva with Damian next to him. Malva was asking Damian questions and the latter responded. Moving closer, the gang began to get an earful of what was being said throughout the interview.

"So Damian, are you confident on your battle against Ash which is coming up?" Malva asked as she looked at Damian's ambitious stance

"Of course I am confident, I could crush that little boy with my bare hands and I plan to do that tomorrow with no difficulty," Damian responded while looking down and with his arms crossed so that his eyes were shadowed.

Malva seemed to be a little taken back by his response and narrowed her eyes, "You don't see Ash as a potential threat?"

"Of course not, _his pokemon are pathetic_ ," Damian spat with a venomous tone as he the smirked and said: "I do have to give him credit for one thing, and that is the fact that one of the caller girls of the Masterclass actually follows him around like a lost puppy." Damian then looked at the camera and smiled, "He is going down and I will show his pokemon, specially that Charizard, why he does not deserve a trainer like me." Damian then smirked, "And when _I beat you Ash_ , I will also take the girl away from you."

The scene then zoomed out to Malva who was commentating over the interview concluding the segment.

Ash looked away from the television set to see eyes on him _and Serena_. A wave of emotions surged through him: mostly anger and irritation at the way that this battle was turning into a battle for dignity, and a battle for glory. Ash knew very well that this battle would be one that he could not afford to lose, one he had to work his tail off to win.

Serena looked flustered, her face was red, but it was not because of romantic implications: it was because of public humiliation. Serena had her hands close to her ribbon as she was beginning to shake a little. It was not like her to begin to lose her cool, but this was definitely something that was starting to haunt her, it made her want to make the ground swallow her whole.

Serena then stopped shaking and became rigid at the feeling of a warm touch grab her hand. Serena looked up to see Ash, but something about him seemed _different_. "Relax Serena," Ash said with a serious voice. "I am confident in my abilities to defeat Damian."

"A-Ash…" Serena said with what sounded like an inaudible squeak. "I uh," Serena then saw how Ash's eyes were filled with determination and fire. At that moment, nothing mattered to Serena as she knew that Ash was finally back and ready to take on Damian, it was something he was looking forward to and he would not back down by a mile.

"Ash, how are you gonna fight back?" Bonnie asked eagerly towards the raven haired trainer.

"Now now Bonnie, let Serena and Ash relax, they were just publicly insulted, which is something they have to catch their breaths on," Clemont explained with a brotherly tone.

"Aww, that is no fair," Bonnie pouted as Brock came behind Bonnie and put a hand on her shoulder as he spoke to Ash:

"What's the plan now, Ash?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Ash asked as he released his hand's grip from a more comfortable Serena. "I win tomorrow, my pokemon and I have worked so hard to get here, so we are going to make sure that we get the job done."

From afar, a boy with a Jolteon snuck a glance towards Ash and Serena and sighed, "Remind me to thank Ash later for helping out my sister."

"Teon," Jolteon replied with an electrified voice as the trainer and pokemon began to walk away in another direction.

Ash and the gang through, they began to walk back in the direction they came from because it was starting to get dark. The sunset was about to begin and Ash knew he would need a good nights rest of he was to take on Damian the next day.

"Hey Ash!" Ash turned around to see the familiar orange haired woman with a camera gang come towards him. Ash looked a little confused as to what Malva was doing, but when he saw the microphone, he knew exactly why Malva was there: "Interview?"

Ash and the others looked at the camera slightly nervously, but the raven haired trainer decided to take his step forward: "Yes, I would be fine with an interview."

Malva smirked as he looked at Ash and then asked, "What is your strategy for taking on Damian tomorrow?"

Ash shadowed his eyes with his cap to then look back at the camera with determination, "I have no strategy and I don't need it…" Ash then smirked, "The only thing I have is _passion_."

"Passion, that is interesting," Malva affirmed as she then looked over at the group and then asked a question that Ash could have seen coming: "After Damian's interview, we can conclude that there has been some bad blood between your opponent and you. Do you mind telling us your response to what Damian claimed about your pokemon?"

Ash clenched his fists a little at this, but he then looked back up at the camera and said: "I don't try to get angry, but when it happens, it is not always pretty." Ash then pumped his fists at the camera and spat, "Attack me, not my pokemon. They are my friends and they do not deserve the criticism you give them."

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted at he camera with an intimidating posture.

Ash though, he was not done, in fact he grew a more venomous voice that shocked not only Malva and Ash's friends, but Pikachu himself was taken agape by Ash's next words. Serena though, she had her hands over her mouth barely able to comprehend what was going on: "Listen up tough guy, leave Serena the hell alone. She is not a 'worker girl' for me and she is definitely not a 'lost puppy' that follows me around. Next time you attack her, I will personally go over there and I will get Charizard to ignite you ablaze while shoving his big, rough, and blazing…"

"OK, so that is Ash's response," Malva said quickly as she turned away from Ash and the others to the cameraman while quickly leaving the scene.

"Hehe, that did it…" Ash turned around to see a snickering Serena, an agape Brock, a Pikachu that had his ears crossed with a bright red cheeks, and a very red faced Clemont covering Bonnie's ears. "What?"

As soon as Clemont let go of Bonnie's ears, she was the first to speak, "Charizard actually has a big, rough, and blazing…?"

"BONNIE!" Clemont shouted with a lot of embarrassment. "That is not what dad would want you to say!"

"Well I was curious," Bonnie pouted as Dedenne popped out of her sac to then jump on the lemon blonde girl's hair.

"Alright guys, it is settled then," Ash said as he fist bumped his electric mouse. "I am going to defeat Damian tomorrow and I am going to make sure to finally get through to him!" Ash then felt as his stomach grumbled as if on queue. "Oh man, now I am getting very hungry."

"Nothing we can't fix," Brock said with a smirk. "I think it is settled then, let's go get some food for us before it gets too dark outside."

"Right!"

"Pika!"

 **That night while trying to sleep:**

"Oh man," Ash grumbled as he rolled over on his bed. Ash looked ahead and saw his eyes adjust to the darkness of his hotel room to see his belt. Ash was still on his normal day clothes, mostly because as soon as he touched the bed, he and Pikachu instantly fell asleep. Looking around, Ash noticed Pikachu lying perfectly sound asleep on the other bed, his chest slowly rising and falling. Ash though, he could not sleep: he felt nervous for the next day, maybe not unconfident, but the Butterfrees were flying about in his stomach.

Deciding to take a walk, Ash did not bother to grab his belt as he walked out with his belt still on his pants. Ash decided to leave the belt of pokeballs with Pikachu, so he carefully unclipped the belt and set it next to the electric rodent. "Pika," Ash smiled as he heard Pikachu mumble in his sleep. It was something he found adorable, but Ash then put on a pensive face as he reached to his belt and pulled out one of the minimized pokeballs.

Ash then looked around and with stealth went out of his room while calling the elevator. The ride down the three floors to the ground level was very short and comforting. Stepping out of the level and into the lobby, there was not really anyone around, and then stepping out into the empty walkway with the moon light above him, it was comforting.

Ash looked around and saw the monitors displaying the symbol for the Kalos league in which it displayed a little bit of light over the shadows of the buildings, primarily the stadium. "Hmm, I wonder where I could go," Ash muttered as he went up the same staircase the he did a couple days prior to when he talked with Hau. Spotting the same tree, Ash walked over and sat down under it. "What can I do for tomorrow, I gotta stay strong, I just gave to…" Ash internally struggled as he ruffled around his hair. Ash then sighed as he reached into his pocket and took out the minimized pokeball. Ash silently pressed the button to make it expand and then released a flashing light of energy to materialize next to him.

"Gruaw?" Charizard asked as he looked down on his trainer. Charizard noticed it was just him alone with Ash and looking around, he heard the silence of the night.

"Charizard," Ash said in an apologetic manner. "Sorry I summoned you at such a time, I just could not sleep." The fire and flying type with the large harness that contained the blue stone cocked his head as he looked on at Ash. "In case you didn't know, we battle Damian tomorrow, the guy that you know very well does not think you are strong at all."

"Gruaw," Charizard crossed his arms disapprovingly, but the he heard as his trainer spoke up once more.

"Let's prove him wrong tomorrow, as a team," Ash said as he looked up at Charizard. The dragon type smirked and gave Ash a thumbs up with his right hand, Ash chuckled at this, "Charizard, you seriously are quite the player aren't you"

"Grruuuaaawww," Charizard replied as he rubbed his cheek up against Ash's.

"Oh come on Charizard, stop it," Ash said as he patted his dragon's head in a loving manner only to then feel himself get burned. "Dang it Charizard!" the raven haired trainer grunted now covered in soot. Ash then took back a pokeball and recalled Charizard back to his red energetic state. Once minimized, he put the pokeball back on his pocket to then walk back towards the hotel. Making it to the walkway, Ash then heard a voice behind him:

"Couldn't sleep, I am guessing," Ash turned around to find Night and Jolteon standing there with arms crossed and a smirk on his face.

"Yea, just a little excited for the battle tomorrow," Ash replied with a sheepish voice and a rub of the back of his head.

"Alright, but get some sleep," Night said calmly. "Anyways, I came here to thank you." Ash cocked his head as he heard this which made Night smile and look down. "Look Ash, I came to thank you for standing up for my sister, it means a lot."

"Wait…" Ash said wide eyed. "Serena is your…"

"I need to tell her personally," Night said with a sigh. "Long story short, I am thankful that you are taking care of her very well."

"Oh," Ash replied still a little agape at seeing that Night was related to Serena. "It was nothing, something just-"

"Snapped when Damian called her a 'worker girl' and a 'lost puppy'? Yeah, that is understandable, I would have done if the girl I had to defend was a significant other," Night replied.

"What does that mean?" Ash asked with a clueless voice.

Night mentally face palmed but then looked away, "You will find out soon enough, I would call you hopeless, but eventually, you will give into the arrow that penetrated your heart."

"What does that mean?" Ash then laughed sarcastically. "Did you get that shy pokemon you have to shoot me?"

Night chuckled a little, "Not that kind of arrow, and Decidueye has a name." Night then turned around and said: "Anyways, Jolteon and I have to get going to do some more surveillance."

"Jol!" Jolteon replied with a nod.

"See you later," Night said as he began to walk away with Jolteon following him. Ash just watched Night and then cocked an eyebrow when he saw Night stop in his tracks, "One more thing…"

" _Kick Damian's a** tomorrow,"_ Night said before completely walking off.

Ash smirked as he saw this and turned back towards the hotel. He was ready to take it on tomorrow. He was ready to show Damian who was boss…

 **A/N: There we go, the battle will begin next chapter.**

 **Be expecting a pretty damn long battle BTW, I am going to try and make the individual battles very intense and lengthy, so if you are a fan of that, then be glad I am doing this!**

 **Hope you enjoyed, remember to R & R and I will see you guys later!**


	43. Chapter 43

**At the battlefield:**

Calem looked over to his right to see the scoreboard going his way:

 **Calem:** _Talonflame_ (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) **Gallade**

 **Cali:** _Bouffalant Magmortar Flygon Nidoking Beedrill_ **Lopunny**

Calem smirked as he saw his mega evolved Gallade facing off against a female bunny like pokemon that was light on her feet touching the rocky ground. Both trainers had just used their mega evolutions and it was obvious that the battle was about to reach the end very soon.

Cali, a girl that wore a red athletic suit, tanned skin, brunette hair, and brown eyes, narrowed her eyes as she called out for a high jump kick towards Gallade. "PUNNY!" Lopunny shouted as she made her right leg glow white and shoot out towards Gallade who was standing in the rocky field with his feet planted on the ground firmly.

"Block it with your cape!" Calem issue as he put his arm in front of himself in a cross like motion. Gallade quickly put his enlarged blades forward, and with that, the white cape dangled in front of himself barely moving to the slight breeze. As soon as the high jump kick collided, the attack was absorbed as it struggled for a while and then both pokemon fell back in front of their trainers.

" _And there is the power of both mega evolutions! This is such an exciting battle!"_

The crowd cheered as Calem then put his fist out, "Use psycho cut!"

"Quick! Use fake out!"

"PUNNY!" Lopunny appeared in front of Gallade with amazing speed and then clapped her hands in front of Gallade in order to cause the bladed pokemon to flinch…

"Gallade…" Gallade grunted with a slightly unamused expression since the fake out had no effect.

"What, it did not work?" Cali asked with a slightly shocked expression as Lopunny landed in front of her.

Calem crossed his arms and smirked as he looked down at the trainer's platform and notice how the sun was causing a large ray of light to strike the field right in the middle. Calem then spoke up: "Gallade's ability when mega evolved is inner focus, he can't be flinched." Cali winced at this, she did not expect of all things for Gallade to be immune to the gimmick that had worked for her in so many battles that got she into the quarter finals.

" _Amazing, and Gallade turns out to be completely immune to a flinching move like fake out! Could this be it for Cali?"_

Getting her teeth, Cali threw her hand forward and shouted, "Use ice beam!" Lopunny reeled her head back and then formed a blue energetic sphere in front of her mouth that shot a freezing bolt of ice that Calem could feel beginning to chill his spine as it began to get near Gallade. Calem narrowed his eyes as he watched the approaching attack begin to get into dangerous range for his blades pokemon.

"Jump into the air!" Calem shouted whole pumping both of his fists. Gallade took no time to jump into the bright blue sky that overlooked the stadium as the freezing beam collided with the rocky ground in front of Calem. The cheers grew as Gallade was then seen beginning to fall towards the ground. "Use close combat!"

"GALLADE!" Gallade shouted as he landed in front of the brown bunny and kicked her in the torso. Before she could get pushed back even more, Gallade then charged and struck Lopunny with a powerful punch that sent her flying back towards Cali. The girl gritted her teeth as she saw Lopunny then use her ears to end up facing towards Gallade, but panting heavily due to the amount of battling going on.

"Alright, Lopunny go in for a dizzy punch!" Cali shouted through the cheering crowd. Lopunny pulled back her fist and shot out forward towards Gallade with great speed that Calem could barely see the bunny pokemon. Lopunny easily slammed her fist into the blade pokemon's torso which caused him to land in front of Calem slightly dazed.

" _Gallade has been hit! And the blow must have done some damage! Will this be the end of Gallade right here?"_

"Gallade, are you alright?" Calem asked his partner who was on the rocky ground. The stands began to cheer a lot harder once Gallade got back onto his feet. Calem then put his hand out and made his next command: "Jump into the air Gallade!"

"Ade!" Gallade shouted as he jumped into the air with a large dust cloud being left in the ground. The blade pokemon then looked down towards Lopunny and her trainer who had stunned faces while looking up.

Calem smirked as he saw his opportunity to strike, so he put his arm out in front of him and shouted: "Cali, take this! Gallade and I are going to give you everything that we've got!" Calem then raised his hand into the air and shouted: "Let's go! Gallade, use PSYCHO CUT!" The crowd cheered harder as Gallade made his blades cross each other while beginning to glow purple.

" _What is going on? Why is Gallade glowing his blades purple so much? Is he charging up a devastating attack?"_

"Gal…." Gallade charged up as he then made the energy in his arms begin to grow and grow over time. "GGGAAALLLL AAAADEEEE!" Gallade shouted as he made his blade of purple energy grow and grow before being expelled at a size three times the size of Gallade himself. The psycho cut traveled gracefully through the air at a speed that pierced through the entire battlefield. The purple blade was about to hit Lopunny, but as it got closer, the brown bunny's eyes gleamed to the sight of the large projectile on the way.

" **BOOM!"** An explosion rung around the rocky stadium thus causing the dust to pick up and swirl around in a circular motion. When the smoke cleared, it was clear that it was over when Lopunny was found in her regular form lying unconscious on the ground.

"Lopunny!" Cali shouted with worry as she saw Lopunny on the ground and Gallade pumping his blade right in front of her.

"Lopunny is unable to battle," the referee began as the volume of the cheering increased. "Gallade wins which means the match goes to Calem from Vaniville Town!"

" _And there you have it! Calem has overwhelmed Cali and ultimately earned himself a spot in the semifinals!"_

"Alright!" Calem shouted as she saw his face be displayed as the winner of the match. Calem then saw as the scoreboard shifted to put his face in a blank of four spaces with the words "semifinal" under it. Calem then pumped his fist knowing he had finally made it to the top 4 of the Kalos League.

Cali recalled her Lopunny just as Calem recalled his Gallade back into his pokeball. Following that, the two trainers made their way into the middle of the rocky battlefield to thank each other for an amazing battle that they had, the light of the sun beaming down on the battlefield.

 **A/N: Alright guys, this time we are going to be starting with Calem against an OC. The reason why I did this is to portray it kind of like the Kalos League in which the anime showed the four trainers that were moving onto the semifinals. Calem is the first to make it, and there is definitely going to be some amazing competition to make it to the semifinals because today we start the battle of Ash vs Damian!**

 **Anyways, I am hyped for this battle as it is a clash between brutality and cheating against pure passion for battling… Which makes this battle ever more interesting.**

 **I hope you guys enjoy this battle since it will take a lot of effort to make it. Because of the emotion displayed during this battle, I am going to suggest you read the entire battle so you can get a good feel of what is happening.**

 **Anyways, I hope to see you guys down at the bottom!**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 43- The Forest Champion! A Hydra of All Trades!

 **In the trainer's lounge:**

" _And there you have it folks! Seth has made it to the semifinals along with Calem! His mega Swampert never backs down!"_

Ash watched closely with Pikachu as he noticed how the boy that had a bright blue jacket and orange pants along with a dark gray hair recalled his Swampert as the scoreboard put his face next to Calem's. At the same time, Ash saw how the opposing trainer, a younger looking boy was recalling his Probopass. Ash watched the entire battle and noticed how Seth maintained such a calm attitude during his battle, regardless, it was a close battle, both trainers having gone down to their last pokemon. Ash then saw as the field retracted down into the ground completely clear.

" _Our next battle will be of Ash against Damian! This will be an interesting match to get underway, maybe even the battle of the day if it lives up to its expectations!"_

Ash noticed how the scoreboard switched to portray his and Damian's faces along with six pokeballs next to each name. Ash and Pikachu nodded towards each other as they began to walk towards the doorway. Once outside, Ash and Pikachu made a right turn into the hexagonal shaped hallways and then made another right to see Seth coming down the stairs that he was about to go up.

The two shifted places without speaking anything and before Ash took the first step up towards the dugout, he looked over at the electric mouse on his shoulder. "Pika…" Pikachu grunted with a determined expression as he eyed Ash. Ash nodded as his scarf slowly waved to a small breeze that billowed through the hallway and then stepped up into the stairs, going up one by one.

" _Ash!"_

"This is it…" Ash muttered as he stood in front of the light that contained the cheers of a millennium of people. Ash pulled back his glove and took a deep breath and then walked into the light. His vision materializing back to itself as he looked around the amounts of people inundating him with cheers. The stadium has a bright sun beaming down from above as Ash stepped into the trainer's platform. Noticing the hexagonal shapes and the scoreboard and the large burning torch, Ash found himself getting slightly more nervous as the time for him to battle neared. Knowing he was coming, Ash clenched his fists as he saw his opponent coming up opposite of him with a large smirk on his face.

" _Damian!"_

Cheers also occurred for Damian as the boy stepped into his trainer's platform with a crooked smile that Ash knew was lethal to his self-esteem. Damian then spoke up: "Nice to see you here Ash, prepared to lose?" The last part, the menacing trainer chuckled which attempted to pierce Ash's heart.

" _And we already have some tension between theses two! This is guaranteed to be a heated battle!"_

Ash took a deep breath as Pikachu jumped down from his shoulder and into the space below Ash. The raven haired trainer looked down at Pikachu and smiled reassuringly to try and calm down the stressed out mouse.

" _Now that we are situated, in what battlefield will we begin this battle?"_

Ash saw how the battlefield came up to join the separation between Damian and him. Noticing every detail, the raven haired trainer noticed how there were trees surrounding a small path in the middle. Ash went wide eyed as he noticed that the battlefield was a forest, instantly knowing who he would lead with. He then looked across the field and saw Damian smirking to then have his eyes drawn to the referee…

It was Rob…

 **At the stands:**

"Ash is battling Damian," Bonnie said with a very uneasy voice. "I am getting very nervous."

"Don't worry, Ash will find a way," Serena said with a very nervous glance as she looked down into the field. Recognizing Rob made her heart sank knowing that this battle is deemed to go with all of the odds against Ash. "Ash, be careful," Serena muttered to herself as she looked at the field to see Ash with very narrowed pensive eyes.

Calem also showed a very nervous attitude as he looked to see the field be a forest. "This is a forest field, Ash will have to work very hard in order to pull this one off."

"Much more than just work hard," Brock responded as Clemont nodded. "Ash has to battle Damian in a very tricky situation, he has to take advantage of the pokemon that he has that are built to be in forests if he is going to win the advantage."

"Good luck Ash!" Tierno and Trevor shouted in unison as they looked at the battlefield. Shauna also clenched her firsts rooting for Ash, she knew very well that this would also be a hard battle for her friend after all.

At the top of the stands, Night was staring down Rob as he turned to his Decidueye. "Hide on the roof and strike when the battle is over." Decidueye nodded at this and then shot up into the sky not visible by anyone as he overlooked the stadium from the roof. Turning down to Jolteon, Night then said: "Let's wait here for now, we need to make sure we ambush that referee as soon as the battle is over."

 **At the battle:**

'Damian is strong, but this is a battle which I have to win, for my passion, and to finally prove that my pokemon are not pathetic and invaluable,' Ash thought to himself as the scene showed the side of Ash's face looking ahead with a very serious expression. The view then circled around the stadium and showed the forest in detail, from the dark brown trunk and the bright green leaves of the trees, to the shrubs and dirt that were on the ground. The path of the center commanding the main battle spot. The view then shifted back towards Ash's eyes, where Ash once again began to think, 'The forest is my friend in this battle, I am going to have to lead with a pokemon that can use the forest efficiently.'

" _The safety lock of this battle is about to be removed! This is something no one is going to want to miss!"_

"This will be a 6 on 6 pokemon battle, the battle will be over when all pokemon on either side are unable to continue," Ash's eyes were drawn to see Rob standing in the forest with his hand up. "Furthermore, substitutions are allowed and the battlefield will change once either side has three pokemon left," Rob then smirked as he said the next part: "Understood?" Ash and Damian both nodded on instinct knowing that there was no turning back. "Alright then, choose your first pokemon!"

Ash did not even bother to reach for a pokeball in his belt, he needed speed and one of his forest dwellers to begin this battle, "Pikachu, I choose you!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he jumped above Ash and landed in the dirt of the middle pathway of the forest. "Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted as he began to collect electricity on his cheeks definitely feeling determined.

" _And Ash goes with his Pikachu!"_

Damian smirked as he saw this, "I already know what you are planning Ash, it won't work." Damian then bobbed a pokeball in his hand before throwing it out into the field, "Let's defeat Pikachu right here and right now Darmanitan!"

"MANITAN!" Darmanitan shouted as he materialized from the pokeball and landed across from Ash with a large thump on the ground. Ash gritted his teeth as he saw Darmanitan, obviously knowing how powerful it would be. Ash narrowed his eyes as he thought about the typing that Darmanitan had, fire… Or maybe something else he was not thinking about?

" _Damian will start with a Darmanitan, this is a battle of big against small!"_

"Let the battle…" Rob started before he then crossed his arm in a down cut. "BEGIN!"

 **Battle music begin! Ash (Pikachu) vs Damian (Darmanitan):**

"Darmanitan, crush him with superpower!" Damian shouted as he put his fist out. Darmanitan flexed his muscles and made a battle cry before slamming his fists into the ground and beginning to charge the electric mouse that stood in front of him. Ash saw the incoming attack and decided that it would be too powerful to attack head on because of inertia, because of that, he decided to go a safer approach.

"Pikachu use quick attack and avoid it!" Ash commanded as he put his hand out palm down. Pikachu made a battle cry as well and made a white outline envelop him as he began to run towards Darmanitan with tense muscles. As soon as Pikachu was in range, the electric mouse jumped up and through the "V" shaped flames that are Darmanitan's eyebrows. Pikachu then leaped on Darmanitan's back and lightly leaped off to which the fire gorilla turned around trying to grab the electric type. "Hide in the forest!" Ash shouted as he pointed towards the trees that were next to the pathway.

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he jumped from the path and into the canopy of the trees. Jumping from branch to branch, Pikachu found it easy to maneuver and conceal himself himself from harm. Damian looked around with a smirk finding it very interesting that Ash would play a running game, but other than that seemed very amused by the fact that Pikachu seemed to be getting away from his danger.

" _And Pikachu uses his speed to conceal himself, what an interesting strategy by Ash!"_

"Use iron tail!" Ash quickly shouted as his eyes gleamed with light from the sun above him. Pikachu did not waste time as he ended up coming out of one of the trees to the left of Ash with an obviously hard tail. Ash then noticed how Pikachu began to swing his tail around and down cut towards Darmanitan, but later grew wide eyed at what Damian countered with:

"Use fire punch!"

"NITAN!" Darmanitan shouted as he made his fist ignite and swing ablaze above him. Pikachu got caught right on the punch, his face was a shade of infernal orange because of the color of the collision which was causing a shockwave in the middle of the pathway. Ash gritted his teeth as he then saw Pikachu get launched into the air because of having been in mid air. As soon as Pikachu was above the tree tops of the forest, Ash noticed how Pikachu's tail was its original color which meant that Pikachu was not using iron tail anymore.

"Pikachu use thunderbolt!" A mirage image of Ash pumping both of his fists showed as Pikachu began to glow in electricity.

"Pika…" Pikachu shouted as his eye gleamed to the sky above him with a bright black color before then making the crackling bolt of lightning shoot downwards towards the ground. "CHUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu shouted as the lightning struck the ground and then proceeded to make a zigzag on the dirt, which left strong burn marks, and then struck right on Darmanitan who was not expecting quite the attack from coming.

"Darma…" Darmanitan growled in pain as he fell in the ground and the electricity stopped surging through him.

" _Pikachu has landed a powerful thunderbolt attack!"_

"Whoa, not bad," Damian replied with a smirk as he then put his hand out and gave the next command: "Now aim upwards and use overheat!" Darmanitan quickly recovered and made his mouth glow a bright blazing color before then launching a large barrage of flames straight at Pikachu who was falling.

Ash went wide eyed as he saw the streaking flames knowing that he had no way of countering them. As soon as Pikachu was hit with the attack, which caused an explosion, Ash gritted his teeth hearing his electric mouse squeal in pain. Falling in front of him, Ash saw how Pikachu managed to get up with slight burn marks on him. "Pikachu are you alright?"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he got up to his feet and recharged electricity on his cheeks.

" _After getting hit by a head on overheat, Pikachu is still standing!"_

"Alright," Ash shouted. Rob looked over at the raven haired trainer out of the corner of his eye and smirked as he then closed his eyes and looked back straight ahead at the two pokemon. "Pikachu use quick attack once more!"

"We won't let that happen, Darmanitan, get ready and use fire punch!" Damian retaliated as he watched Pikachu begin to shoot out like a speeding bullet towards Darmanitan. The large fire type made his blazing fists propel forward towards Pikachu, who was coming at great speed, but as soon as Pikachu was close enough, Ash finally made a move that Damian did not predict:

"Thunderbolt on yourself!"

"Pika… CHUUUUU!" Everyone could see as a streak of yellow electricity and a tank of fire collided with a shockwave that made the two trainers cover their eyes, but looking back at the battle, Ash and Damian noticed that Pikachu and Darmanitan were in a stalemate of power. "CHUUUUUU!"

" _What amazing power! Pikachu definitely lives up to his own name!"_

"Don't give up!" Ash shouted towards Pikachu who seemed to be staggering a little. Pikachu opened his eyes and put all of his power into his electricity which then caused him to go through the fists and strike Darmanitan while ending up behind Darmanitan with a fist on the ground and a smirk on his face. Pikachu then had some sparks go around him as recoil damage as he turned around to face the fire type who was consumed in a large explosion.

"What happened?" Ash asked as he narrowed his eyes. He then saw a pair of red eyes beaming through the smoke inside the battle field, and from that it was obvious that Darmanitan had not gone down yet. "Alright, Pikachu, how are you holding up?" The raven haired trainer asked as he looked towards Pikachu, who was across from him.

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he pumped his fists and then hurried to run back towards Ash. Looking forward, Ash then noticed how Darmanitan had recovered himself from the smoke, but he was not in the same appearance… Ash looked closer and noticed that in the middle of the pathway of the forest, there was a metallic pokemon with the same size as Darmanitan. It looked very harmless, but it was still watching with great power. Ash looked at Rob and Damian and noticed that they both were looking very amused about what was going on which made the raven haired trainer look at Pikachu suspiciously.

" _Darmanitan's Zen mode has activated, how will that affect this battle?"_

"How do you like this Ash?" Damian taunted. "Things are about to get very hard for you!"

"We'll see about that!" Ash shouted as he then put his fist out. "Use thunderbolt!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUU!"

Nothing…

Darmanitan was sitting there unharmed. This made Ash grit his teeth as he then pumped his fist, "Pikachu use iron tail continuously, do not stop!"

"Pika… CHU!" he struck the right side of the metal.

"CHU!" Left.

"CHU PI!" Top of the metal, but Darmanitan was not giving in.

" _And Darmanitan is taking the hits without taking much damage, this could be bad for Ash."_

"This is bad…" Ash gritted his teeth as he narrowed his eyes down at the field.

"TAN!" Darmanitan shouted back having adopted a more metallic and futuristic voice instead of the usual exotic-wild voice it had.

 **At the stands:**

"This is Darmanitan's zen mode," Brock said as he put a hand to his chin.

"It has obviously gained more endurance, Ash can't relax on this one," Clemont said which caused everyone to nod their hards except one small energetic individual.

"Go Ash! Go Pikachu!" Bonnie shouted as she stood at the edge of her seat obviously knowing that things were not going so well for the raven haired trainer.

Night crossed his arms from his point of view. The battle seemed to be having a legitimate start… Something was not adding up to the black and blue attired boy as he then wondered how Ash would even be able to get through things that definitely would not be allowed in an official battle.

 **At the battle:**

"Pikachu go into the forest again and then follow up with thunderbolt!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he jumped back onto the trees around the pathway and began to conceal himself into the forest. Damian and Rob looked the way that Pikachu went with smirks as they then waited for Pikachu to show back up. "Pika…" Pikachu shouted as he leaped from a tree and down towards Darmanitan. "CHUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu shouted with a yellow gleam in his face because of the electricity. There was an explosion when the electric beam hit which made Ash pump his fist as Pikachu landed in front of him, but then the raven haired trainer and his pokemon alike went wide eyed when they saw the same metal structure in the middle of the field completely unharmed.

" _Still not enough!"_

"Had enough?" Damian taunted as he narrowed his eyes towards Ash.

Ash gritted his teeth as he then took a deep breath and said, "Pikachu return!" Pikachu perked his ears up as he heard this and then began to walk towards Ash.

Ash went wide eyed as he then heard something he did not expect: "Use overheat!" Darmanitan began to charge up the attack, and from the looks of it, the zen mode boosted special attacks because the fire was starting to collect with a lot of power.

" _Ash recalled his Pikachu, but Darmanitan is still attacking, is something going on?"_

"I recalled my pokemon, he cannot attack!" Ash retaliated as he looked at Rob. The referee pretended to not listen as if claiming that the crowd was too loud and Ash was inaudible. Ash then gritted his teeth as he saw the fire beam shoot out of Darmanitan like a volcanic eruption that there was no stopping. "Pikachu! LOOK OUT!" Ash shouted with panic.

"Pika?" Pikachu turned around just in time to see the flames about to collide with him.

To Ash it was a blur, at first he saw a bright light appear and then he noticed how there was a large explosion that happened in front of him to which he had to cover his eyes up with gritted teeth. His scarf was waving ferociously as he then looked in front of him to notice that Pikachu was… Gone?

" _W-Where did Pikachu go?"_

 **At the stands:**

Serena gritted her teeth as she held her ribbon close. Shauna, Tierno, Trevor, and Calem looked forward with shocked faces while Brock clenched his fist. The only two that did not look were Clemont and Bonnie, the two were embraced, mostly because Clemont did not want Bonnie to see that brutality.

After the explosion in the middle of the field, everyone grew shocked to see that Pikachu was gone. "B-but how?" Shauna dared ask.

"I-I don't know," Serena replied as she held her ribbon like her life depended on it. Serena then took a deep breath thinking that Pikachu could be safe, but she was not sure, "I-I don't know if Ash should have even taken this battle on with that much danger."

"We have to keep our hopes up for Ash," Brock replied. "If no one does, then he will lose the battle."

Calem clenched his fists, "Come on Ash, we promised…"

 **At the battle:**

Ash closed his eyes and took a relieved breath knowing what had happened. Damian and Rob had shocked faces with their eyes nearly popping out of their sockets as they watched how Darmanitan was all alone in the battlefield. It was evident that Ash had recalled Pikachu, and now it was displayed in the scoreboard.

"Choose your next pokemon," Rob told Ash very nervously through the sounds of the crowd murmuring amongst themselves.

Ash looked down and chuckled, "I don't need to, he's already out here."

Damian and Rob looked at Ash confused, but then a blue blurb appeared from the trees and landed in front of Ash. "Ninja," Greninja said as he gave Pikachu to Ash, who was in the ninja frog's arms. Ash smiled and put Pikachu back on the ground to take a bit of a rest after what had happened. "Ninja…" Greninja muttered as he looked from the corner of his eye towards Darmanitan who was in the middle of the field.

" _And Greninja has saved the day by saving Pikachu, amazing!"_

"Greninja is my next pokemon," Ash said confidently as he eyed the Darmanitan. "I am ready as soon as you are."

"Fine then, use overheat!" Damian shouted. Darmanitan once again made his fire beam shoot out towards Ash's Greninja. The sinister water type standing there with his arms crossed waiting for Ash's command.

"Dodge it!" Ash shouted as he put his hand out at his side. Greninja did not even blink as he jumped into the air as the fire went below him. The overheat then crashed before hitting Ash on the dirt and caused an explosion. Ash instinctively went back in the offensive and put his hand out. "Use aqua blade!"

"NINJA!" Greninja shouted as he made his dark blue kunai knife strike the metallic figure. The Darmanitan then staggered and began to sway from side to side obviously having difficulty with the water and dark type move.

" _It is hurting now! The unique move aquablade has made itself useful against Darmanitan!"_

"Go for an aerial ace!" Ash shouted as he put his fist in front of him. The water type made his fist glow white and then he charged the fire and psychic type tank which caused Damian to go wide eyed.

"Not going to happen," Damian declared as he then put his fist out. "Darmanitan use superpower!" Darmanitan didn't even move as he made his body glow white. When Greninja landed on the glowing body, he fell backwards in front of Ash. The raven haired trainer called out to his water type, who sat back up on the ground while trying to look forward. "Use will o wisp!"

This caught Ash and Greninja off guard as the fire embers began to encircle Greninja. "Get out of there!" Ash shouted with panic, but it was too late. The embers closed the pinsir and encased Greninja in embers that made him glow on fire. "Oh no!" Ash exclaimed knowing that his water type was now burned.

" _Oh no, Greninja has suffered getting burned, this is really bad for Ash if the battle continues any further!"_

Darmanitan use overheat once more!" Damian shouted with a smirk as he noticed Darmanitan make another swirl of infernal energy charge up and shoot out through the path lighting fire to the nearby grass. Ash gritted his teeth as he noticed Greninja slowly get back on his feet. The large barrage of flames was very close, but he had to rely on his resources if he was going to end up victorious.

"Double team!" Ash's eyes sparkled as he spread his arms out. Greninja made a cross in front of him with his two webbed arms and then made many copies of himself go in all directions that included the forest. The overheat passed through the Greninja copies and thus made the real Greninja get off scot free from the attack. Ash then noticed as Greninja jumped from the nearest tree to Darmanitan and began to fall towards the fire type in slow motion. "Greninja use aqua blade once more!"

"NINJA!" A large trail of dark blue swiped across Darmanitan's metallic state and caused an explosion which made the fire and psychic type fall on its side with a very dazed look. At this Rob and Damian had similar expressions of shock as Ash then put his arms out.

" _Darmanitan seems to be staggered, is this it for him?"_

"Finish it with water shuriken!" Ash commanded as Greninja put his arms at the shuriken markings on his legs and launched the two ninja stars like disks towards Darmanitan, who was still on the ground dazed. As soon as the shurikens collided, an explosion enveloped Darmanitan which caused the metallic tank to fall in front of Damian completely unconscious. At the same time, Greninja fell in front of Ash in a ninja stance to then wince in pain from the burn.

Rob seemed shock, but sighed as he raised his hand, "Darmanitan is unable to battle, Greninja wins!"

" _And Greninja got Ash the upper hand, amazing!"_

Darmanitan was knocked out of the scoreboard as Damian recalled his pokemon. Ash then spoke up as he held a pokeball in front of his hand, "Thanks so much Greninja, return," Ash praised as he made his water type return back to its pokeball.

"Not bad Ash," Damian said as he smirked at his opponent. "But you have not seen anything yet…"

"Bring it," Ash taunted with narrowed eyes that shadowed the upper part of Ash's view.

"Metagross let's go!" Damian shouted as he threw a pokeball onto the field. The pokeball erupted into a flashing light that then turned into a blue metallic pokemon that landed on the ground with a thud which then made a battlecry which caused the entire forest to shake. Ash flinched a little at the sight of the steel and psychic pseudo legendary, but nonetheless reached for his belt for the pokemon that would actually have a chance of defeating Metagross.

" _What a beast! Metagross has to be a powerful opponent bound to give Ash trouble!"_

"I choose you!" Ash shouted as he threw the pokeball high into the air. The pokeball erupted into a flashing light that then put Sceptile in front of Ash with a large battle cry. Ash then smirked as he saw Sceptile begin to stretch and look at the surroundings as he adjusted the toothpick branch to his mouth. "Sceptile, this battle is as good as ours, if we use the forest to your advantage there is no way we can lose!"

"Tile!" Sceptile smirked and put a thumbs up back towards Ash before turning towards Metagross and narrowing his eyes. "Tile…"

" _Ash leads with Sceptile, what a smart choice!"_

 **At the stands:**

"How is Sceptile a smart choice? his grass type attacks are resisted by Metagross's steel typing," Shauna said with a worried voice.

"It has to do with the battlefield being a forest," Brock replied as he put a hand to his chin. "The fact that Ash is using a forest dwelling pokemon in a forest type field."

"Serena, didn't you say that Ash has never beaten Damian before?" Clemont asked curiously towards the honey blonde, who had kept her attention towards the field with her hands clenched into fists.

"Yes, but that is the Ash from the past," Serena replied as her blue eyes glistened in the sun light. "Ash has been training harder than ever to be able to stand a chance against Damian, and now he is proving it, he took down Darmanitan and I know Ash will be fine against Metagross."

"But I do not like the brutality of the battle," Trevor suddenly said. "That dude is very toxic, I know that Ash is probably having some emotional obstacles."

"Something about the referee I do not like either," Tierno replied as he looked down at the field. "The man is not paying attention to the times when Damian is trying to exploit the system." Tierno then crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow, "I am surprised the organization has not stopped the battle already."

 **At the battle:**

Rob signaled to resume the battle and Ash went first this time: "Hide in the forest!" Sceptile looked to his surroundings and effortlessly leaped from his spot in the middle dirt trail to the side of the arena and into the trees. Damian seemed to narrow his eyes as he watched this, obviously knowing that a pokemon like Metagross was capable of a lot of devastation. Ash then pointed forward with a smirk as he saw a flash to one of the trees to his right. "Use dragon claw!"

"Intercept it with psyshock!" Damian retaliated with pumped fists. Metagross looked instinctively towards the direction in which Sceptile had appeared and launched pink beams from his body right towards the tree frog pokemon. Ash went wide eyed as he saw Sceptile get struck in the chest with the attack and get launched to be in the middle of the field. Damian saw this and then pumped his fist: "Now use meteor mash!"

"META!"

"Tile?" Sceptile asked as he watched how Metagross merged his two front legs to then shoot out in a blue covered aura in his direction with a lot of speed. Ash flinched barely even able to make a command to dodge as he saw the attack strike Sceptile head on. "SCEPTILE!" Sceptile cried in pain as he was launched back by the attack. Sceptile was then in front of Ash with a very dazed look on his face, Ash knowing that if things kept up, Sceptile would lose very easily.

" _Amazing! Sceptile has just been collided with a powerful meteor mash following a ferocious psychock! The tables may have just turned!"_

"Sceptile, are you alright?" Ash asked with worry as he noticed Sceptile get to his knees. The tree frog got back to his knees and narrowed his eyes towards Metagross. Sceptile then nodded back towards Ash and the raven haired trainer decided to go on the offensive again: "Alright then, Sceptile get in close with leaf blade!"

"Scep... " Sceptile grunted as he made the lateral part of his arms turn into green blades. "TILE!" Sceptile exclaimed as he began to run towards Metagross while crossing the blades in front of his face knowing full on that he would have to pull off something interesting if he were to win the battle.

"Use flash cannon!"

"What?" Ash asked in shock as he then noticed Metagross charge up a white silvery beam in front of him that shot out like a hyper beam in the direction of Sceptile like a bright light that cut through the forest. Sceptile struggled as he got consumed in the bright light and attempted to use his blades to protect himself. The cheering crowd got to see as the forest illuminated with light because the beam dispersed in many directions as Sceptile managed to pierce the attack, but nonetheless it was powerful enough to begin to push back Sceptile. Ash noticed this and gritted his teeth as he shouted his next command: "I know you can do this Sceptile, use leaf storm straight down!"

"Scep… TILE!" Sceptile shouted as he pointed his tail down and began to use his tornadic barrage of leaves downward. That was enough to push Sceptile high into the sunny sky as the flash cannon then kept going and exploded in front of Ash thus causing the raven haired trainer to cover his face in the shockwave of the attack before looking up to see that Sceptile was completely gone from anyone's view. A side view of both trainer's faces portrayed Ash smirking and Damian the one gritting his teeth.

" _Where is Sceptile? What can Damian do now to keep Metagross out of trouble?"_

"Metagross, keep your guard high, he could be anywhere," Damian said as the view shifted to see through the sides of the forest. There was no movement, but then suddenly a shrub ruffled around which instantly drew the cocky boy's perception to it. "There! Use bullet punch!" Metagross instantly shot out like a bullet with his front two legs pounding on the shrub only to realize that there was nothing there. "Grrr…." Damian grunted as he then looked to his right and noticed that there was some movement from the top of one of the trees. "There it is! Bullet-"

"Meta!" Metagross cried in pain as he staggered from getting hit by two swipes of scaly green claws. Damian looked ahead of him and noticed that there was a figure around Sceptile's height, but it did not look like Sceptile, it was covered in leaves in a way that looked sort of like battle armor.

" _Is that Sceptile? It seems that it has turned leafs into battle armor!"_

"What?" Damian asked with a dazed expression in his face to a smirking Ash.

Ash heard as the entire stadium was cheering for his Sceptile, he knew that he had all of the support he could behind him and then decided to test Damian, "So you noticed that Sceptile used the forest to his advantage?" Ash then chuckled. "A real forest champion always has to look his best, isn't that right Sceptile?"

"Tile!" Sceptile cheered as he looked back at Ash with a pumped fist.

"Grrr…. Meteor mash!" Damian shouted with a slightly panicked voice. Metagross once again made his two front legs merge before shooting out in a powerful blue aura of power that Ash was smirking at.

" _Here comes another meteor mash from Metagross. What will Ash do now?"_

"Wait for it…" Ash muttered as he then thought of a way to be able to defeat Metagross right here and there. As soon as Metagross was about to hit Sceptile, the raven haired trainer put his hand out, "Jump over Metagross and then use frenzy plant to grab its legs to prevent it from moving!"

"Tile!" Sceptile shouted as he jumped over the speeding steel type. Damian gritted his teeth as he saw this because this meant that his attack was ineffective. "Scep… TILE!" Sceptile shouted as he then landed on the ground and engraved his fist into the dirt to then cause the ferocious plants to consume the forest and shoot towards Metagross. The steel type attempted to avoid the attack, but it was clear that the plants had gotten a grip on it as soon as the legs were completely immobile.

"Use meteor mash again!" Damian commanded only for Metagross to not be able to move and do anything. "Argh!" Damian growled in frustration knowing that his pokemon was completely trapped.

" _Metagross is stuck! It is not able to move now, is this it for the pseudo legendary?"_

"Use leaf storm!" A mirage image of Ash showed how Sceptile charged up the tornadic barrage of leafs to shoot out in the direction of Metagross. When the leafs hit, the steel and psychic type was unable to move and got suspended in mid air along with the plants in which he could not move.

"Meta…" Metagross growled as he could not move and could not do anything to which Damian called out. The stands were cheering very loudly at this point knowing that Metagross was at its limit and quickly running out of steam.

" _It has staggered! Metagross is feeling the effects of the leaf storm!"_

Ash saw his opportunity as Sceptile stopped his attack and Metagross landed barely moving in front of Damian, "Use leaf blade!"

"TILE!" two green shadows of the trails of the green blades went through Metagross and then Sceptile landed behind the steel type with a smirk as he made his blades retract back to his arms with the leaf battle armor dissipating into leafs that trickled over Metagross. An explosion then consumed Metagross to which everyone stayed quiet. As soon as the smoke and leafs cleared, it was evident that Metagross had been rendered unable to battle after that attack.

Rob took no time to declare the ruling despite the fact that things were not going Damian and his way, "Metagross is unable to battle, Sceptile wins!"

" _And he has done it! Ash got the two pokemon lead after an amazing execution of power and a great use of teamwork!"_

"Alright!" Ash cheered as Sceptile went over to him and gave the raven haired trainer a high five at the trainer's platform to which the stands cheered with a very large volume. At the same time, Damian silently recalled Metagross as the scoreboard portrayed that the steel type was out of the battle completely.

 **At the stands:**

"Alright Ash!" Serena shouted as she got out of her seat to have a small breeze make her hair wave. To this she put a hand up to her hair and parted it to the side so she could keep looking down at the battlefield while cheering on for her crush who was talking with Sceptile. The crowd was very loud due to the hype that was being expressed after Sceptile took down a Metagross with a great unpredictable strategy.

"Now Ash is on a roll!" Calem shouted with a smile as he pumped his fist on his chair. "Just four more pokemon to go and Ash will be in the semi finals!"

"I would not relax just yet," Everyone's heads turned to Clemont who had a glare in his glasses. The glare then reflected Damian's figure looking right towards Ash as the young inventor spoke up: "I might not know Damian, but I am getting the strange sensation that he is going to put that Hydreigon into battle soon enough."

"He's right," Brock added. "If Ash were to battle that Hydreigon, he is going to need a lot of his team just to take it down, and the rest of Damian's team is unknown." Brock then put a hand on his chin. "Damian has used pokemon that are extremely big and tough so far, he might have a small a swift pokemon, but the fact is that they are probably all going to be large and powerful, using raw power to take down Ash's pokemon."

"Ash also has some pretty big pokemon, like Charizard!" Trevor replied with a smirk.

"Let's not forget about Goodra!" Tierno also smiled towards Brock.

"Noivern may also come in handy, but Pikachu may also pack a punch," Shauna said with a smile. "Although I feel like Pikachu might need to take a little more rest after the battle he had with Darmanitan."

"Things also depend on the field change as well," Calem replied as he sat back on his chair. "If the field ends up being in Ash's favor, then he may be able to pull of the same technique he did here." At this everyone nodded, but Serena looked at Ash and noticed the raven haired boy looking more confident in himself as he then had Sceptile go back towards the middle of the forest field.

 **At the battle:**

"Alright Ash," Damian said as he pulled a pokeball out from his belt and bounced it in his right hand. "Things are about to get a little harder for you now."

" _What is the pokemon that Damian is going to go with next?"_

Ash narrowed his eyes as he looked to see Rob also smiling at the side of the forest, something he was not expecting, but he knew that if someone was coming out, it was powerful. "Bring it."

"Hydreigon let's go!" Damian exclaimed as he threw the pokeball into the field. The device opened to a large flashing light the the levitating three headed hydra that was in the middle of the forest in front of Sceptile.

"DREIGON!" Hydreigon shouted as he made the trees shake from the loudness of the volume. Sceptile did not flinch as he looked at the large dragon pokemon, obviously knowing that this would be a challenge to take down.

" _And there it is, the powerful Hydreigon!"_

"There it is…" Ash muttered under his breath as he stared down the large pseudo legendary from Unova. "Sceptile, you ready to give it everything we have?"

"Tile!"

"Great!" Ash exclaimed as he put his fists down at his sides with good muscle tone. He was ready to take a stab at defeating the undefeatable Hydreigon, obviously knowing that it might take more than just Sceptile to do this, but reaching down into his belt, Ash noticed that there was one pokeball that was having an itch to burst open and take on this pokemon. Ash ignored the vibrating pokeball though and looked forward to see that Damian was about to give the first attack.

"Hydreigon, use dragon rush!"

"DREIGON!"

Ash calmly expected a move of a magnitude this large from the beginning of the battle and thus pointed forward: "Hide in the forest!" Sceptile got to work and leaped from tree to tree to disappear from view. Damian though, he smirked as Hydreigon began to chase after Sceptile, the large pokemon tearing down the trees as he rammed into them. "What the… Sceptile get out of Hydreigon's way!"

"Keep going Hydreigon, clear the entire field!"

"Tile?" Sceptile asked as he saw the large hydra catching up to him from behind. "Tile, tile tile!" Sceptile shouted as he leaped from tree to tree to then have the crashing sound of the dragon and dark type pokemon destroying the field behind him. Once one side of the field had been completely destroyed to the ground, Sceptile went to the other side only for the same thing to happen to the other side in a manner of seconds. "Tile…. Sceptile," Sceptile grunted as he narrowed his eyes in front of Ash looking at the pseudo legendary that landed in front of Damian with his bright blue glow disappearing completely to expose the bright black skin of the hydra.

" _It seems that Hydreigon has cut down the entire forest! This can be bad for Ash!"_

"This is bad…" Ash muttered as he then noticed that Damian ordered for a dragon pulse to be launched towards Sceptile. Seeing how Hydreigon opened his mouth and the two mouths on his arms, the colorful dragon shaped beam began to surge towards Sceptile in a way that looked like another dragon charging the tree frog pokemon. "Use leaf storm!" Ash commanded with his hands out and beaming eyes. Sceptile acted quickly as he made his entire body turn around to then shoot out the storm of leafs in the direction of the dragon. The two attacks staggered, but being an attempt to intercept the attack caused an explosion in the middle of the field that hurled smoke, branches, and tree debris into the air. Ash noticed that Hydreigon was probably immobile after that, so he issued a command with his hand out: "Use leaf blade!"

"Scep…" Sceptile ran through the smoke to make his blades glow green. "TILE!" Sceptile shouted as he then swung his blades towards Hydreigon.

"Clamp it!"

"Tile? Sceptile!" Sceptile panicked as he struggled to get out of the grip of the large pokemon.

"Sceptile no!" Ash shouted with desperation as he noticed that Sceptile was completely trapped. He could try to come up with a plan, but how would he be able to take down Hydreigon in the process?

" _Sceptile has been trapped by Hydreigon, what can Ash do now?"_

"Now finish it with dragon pulse!" Damian issued with a pumped fist for Hydreigon to begin to make his colorful beam appear and strike Sceptile in the abdomen which pushed the tree frog pokemon back towards Ash with a large explosion following.

"Sceptile…" Sceptile grunted in the ground unable to battle after the large brutal attack.

"Sceptile is unable to battle," Rob declared as he put his hand into the air. "Hydreigon wins!"

" _And after a matter of blows, Hydreigon has ended up victorious over Sceptile! Damian may be on the road to a comeback!"_

"Sceptile return," Ash said as he recalled his pokemon back to his pokeball to a cheering crowd. The raven haired trainer did not even waste time as he grabbed another pokeball from his pokeball and threw it into the field: "Greninja I am counting on you!"

"Ninja!" Greninja shouted as he landed in front of Hydreigon with a clearly scratched up body. Greninja then fell to his knees and struggled to stay up as he was lit on fire. It was clear that the burn was doing a lot against Greninja, but that would not stop the sinister water type from at least trying.

" _Greninja is still burned after that battle with Darmanitan, could it even stand a chance?"_

"Greninja use water shuriken!" Ash commanded. Greninja was fast as he quickly made the blue ninja stars and launched them towards Hydreigon. Damian did not even make the dark type avoid the attack as it hit Hydreigon to get consumed in a small explosion. "Now go in with aerial ace!"

"Use dragon rush!"

Both pokemon charged up their attack and charged at each other. The scene circled around the frog ninja pokemon with white limbs to then see the dragon pokemon with a blue aura charging each other in between a large area of deforestation. The two pokemon collided in what seemed to be a stalemate, Greninja standing his ground well despite having a weaker move. Both trainers gritted their teeth knowing that this could end a stalemate, and it did as the center of the field erupted into an explosion of smoke and cut down tree debris.

" _What an intense explosion, what could have possibly happened?"_

"Dreigon…" Hydreigon grunted as he fell to the ground to then get back up in front of Greninja, who was still standing.

Greninja was shown for a moment standing fine, but then a fire consumed Greninja which caused him to wince a little, but still stay standing. "Nin…" Greninja's body then went limp and fell on its side to hit his head against the ground with swirly eyes.

Rob did not even waste a second to call out the defeat: "Greninja is unable to battle, Hydreigon wins!"

" _And Hydreigon has gotten Damian back on track! Amazing performance by the dragon type!"_

"Greninja are you alright?" Ash shouted as he and Pikachu ran out from the trainer's platform to check on the water type.

"Ninja…." Greninja apologized as Ash held onto him with his hand around the ninja's shoulder.

"Don't apologize," Ash said with a smile as he looked at Greninja's eyes. "We will have our chance to show them who we are together, but I need to win this battle with someone else." Ash then gave a toothy grin, "You were awesome out there against Darmanitan too!"

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed reassuringly towards the water and dark type.

"Ninja," Greninja smiled under his scarf as Ash recalled him back into his pokeball. Ash and Pikachu then walked back into the trainer's platform only to hear things that he had been dreading to hear the whole battle.

"Pathetic as always," Damian said as he looked back up towards Ash. "I was able to take back the ground I lost with one pokemon, and I plan to take the lead with him."

Ash narrowed his eyes noticing that Pikachu was looking at him with a very worried look. The raven haired trainer ignored Damian as he reached into his belt. He felt the same particular pokeball shivering with a little more power now, but Ash instead of choosing that one went for the one right next to it. Ash then showed that pokeball in front of his face and launched it into the field: "Goodra, I choose you!"

"GOOOOOOOOO!" Goodra shouted as he appeared in the middle of the debris with a determined look. "GOODRA!"

" _And Ash decides to go with Goodra next! This may as well be what gives Ash the lead into the next portion of the battle, but it is definitely going to be a tough battle of pseudo legendary pokemon!"_

Ash smiled at this as he heard the crowd cheer in approval to the scene of Goodra, one of Ash's most elite pokemon. Ash looked towards the scoreboard and noticed he the team that was being wasted the quickest, but that did not matter to Ash. All that mattered to the raven haired trainer at this point is getting the advantage:

 **Damian:** _Metagross Darmanitan_ (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) **Hydreigon**

 **Ash:** _Greninja Sceptile_ (pokeball) (pokeball) Pikachu **Goodra**

 **At the stands:**

"I think that Goodra could win, but it would have to take a great amount of power for it to happen, Hydreigon is very tough," Clemont said as he adjusted his glasses. "This is no walk in the park, this battle has not even reached its peak yet."

"Go Ash!" Bonnie shouted as she jumped out of her seat.

"Oh Ash," Serena said with a nervous expression and grabbing her ribbon. "Please be careful."

 **A/N: Oh god, things are getting intense. We start off the next chapter with Goodra against Hydreigon. Not really going to spoil much of what is going to happen during the battle, but do keep in mind that it will only pick up from here.**

 **I hope you are enjoying the story so far, I am actually writing this A/N a day before the day before I publish chapter 26. You guys are so far behind from my perspective xD!**

 **Anyways, remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

* * *

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **NinjaFang1331: Thanks, glad you enjoyed!**

 **ArmorshippingFan: Let's see how Ash will do against Damian, that Hydreigon is very tough! I read that they have a very tough rivalry 0_0! Thanks for reviewing!**

 **Guest 1: We will see, first, we have to make sure Ash can get through that Hydreigon!**

 **Thor94: I hope it does, let's see what the writer (me) has in store! If he makes Ash lose I will also be kind of pissed... But it could make for a dramatic ending to the Kalos League already... uh oh, Oh yea, thanks for reviewing!**

 **Nick The Pikachu2: Thanks! Glad you enjoyed!**

 **Leafeon12: Thanks, get ready for stuff to pick up in the next chapters!**

 **Guest 2: Amourshipping and proud (pounds chest), thanks for reviewing!**


	44. Chapter 44

**Incase you did not read the end of the last chapter:**

"Ninja!" Greninja shouted as he landed in front of Hydreigon with a clearly scratched up body. Greninja then fell to his knees and struggled to stay up as he was lit on fire. It was clear that the burn was doing a lot against Greninja, but that would not stop the sinister water type from at least trying.

" _Greninja is still burned after that battle with Darmanitan, could it even stand a chance?"_

"Greninja use water shuriken!" Ash commanded. Greninja was fast as he quickly made the blue ninja stars and launched them towards Hydreigon. Damian did not even make the dark type avoid the attack as it hit Hydreigon to get consumed in a small explosion. "Now go in with aerial ace!"

"Use dragon rush!"

Both pokemon charged up their attack and charged at each other. The scene circled around the frog ninja pokemon with white limbs to then see the dragon pokemon with a blue aura charging each other in between a large area of deforestation. The two pokemon collided in what seemed to be a stalemate, Greninja standing his ground well despite having a weaker move. Both trainers gritted their teeth knowing that this could end a stalemate, and it did as the center of the field erupted into an explosion of smoke and cut down tree debris.

" _What an intense explosion, what could have possibly happened?"_

"Dreigon…" Hydreigon grunted as he fell to the ground to then get back up in front of Greninja, who was still standing.

Greninja was shown for a moment standing fine, but then a fire consumed Greninja which caused him to wince a little, but still stay standing. "Nin…" Greninja's body then went limp and fell on its side to hit his head against the ground with swirly eyes.

Rob did not even waste a second to call out the defeat: "And Greninja is unable to battle, Hydreigon wins!"

" _And Hydreigon has gotten Damian back on track! Amazing performance by the dragon type!"_

"Greninja are you alright?" Ash shouted as he and Pikachu ran out from the trainer's platform to check on the water type.

"Ninja..." Greninja apologized as Ash held onto him with his hand around the ninja's shoulder.

"Don't apologize," Ash said with a smile as he looked at Greninja's eyes. "We will have our chance to show everyone who we are together, but I need to win this battle with someone else." Ash then gave a toothy grin, "You were awesome out there against Darmanitan too!"

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed reassuringly towards the water and dark type.

"Ninja," Greninja smiled under his scarf as Ash recalled him back into his pokeball. Ash and Pikachu then walked back into the trainer's platform only to hear things that he had been dreading to hear the whole battle.

"Pathetic as always," Damian said as he looked back up towards Ash. "I was able to take back the ground I lost with one pokemon, and I plan to take the lead with him."

Ash narrowed his eyes noticing that Pikachu was looking at him with a very worried look. The raven haired trainer ignored Damian as he reached into his belt. He felt the same particular pokeball shivering with a little more power now, but Ash instead of choosing that one went for the one right next to it. Ash then showed that pokeball in front of his face and launched it into the field: "Goodra, I choose you!"

"GOOOOOOOOO!" Goodra shouted as he appeared in the middle of the debris with a determined look. "GOODRA!"

" _And Ash decides to go with Goodra next! This may as well be what gives Ash the lead into the next portion of the battle, but it is definitely going to be a tough battle of pseudo legendary pokemon!"_

Ash smiled at this as he heard the crowd cheer in approval to the scene of Goodra, one of Ash's most elite pokemon. Ash looked towards the scoreboard and noticed he the team that was being wasted the quickest, but that did not matter to Ash. All that mattered to the raven haired trainer at this point is getting the advantage:

 **Damian:** _Metagross Darmanitan_ (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) **Hydreigon**

 **Ash:** _Greninja Sceptile_ (pokeball) (pokeball) Pikachu **Goodra**

 **At the stands:**

"I think that Goodra could win, but it would have to take a great amount of power for it to happen, Hydreigon is very tough," Clemont said as he adjusted his glasses. "This is no walk in the park, this battle has not even reached its peak yet."

"Go Ash!" Bonnie shouted as she jumped out of her seat.

"Oh Ash," Serena said with a nervous expression and grabbing her ribbon. "Please be careful."

 **A/N: This chapter is going to be an interesting one as Ash attempts to keep up with Damian. There is only one problem though, and that is that Hydreigon is still on Ash's way.**

 **How will Ash cope with Hydreigon? Will he even be able to do anything? Can Goodra be enough to knock out Hydreigon? Or will Ash have to hope someone else can miraculously do the work?**

These answers will be answered this chapter! Goodra against Hydreigon first, let's make sure that the slimy dragon we love pulls off the upset and defeats that terrible undefeated hydra!

 **Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter!**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 44- The biggest ears can also be the most deaf ones!

 **At the stadium:**

"Look Chespie, the battle is getting more intense as it progresses," Mairin said as she restlessly looked out the glass that was in front of her. Behind her, Professor Sycamore was looking at the battle as well. He had a very skeptical look as he looked down towards Ash and Goodra who were battling against Damian and his Hydreigon. He watched as Goodra landed a thunder to then get hit back with a dragon pulse.

"Yes, it is," the Professor implied as he looked back towards Mairin. "Although people seem to be rooting for Damian, I am actually rooting for Ash. Mostly because he is my most interesting student I have had in a long time."

"Professor," Mairin said as she looked back up at the older man. "Isn't that Damian guy the same one that I ran into yesterday?"

At this Chespie seemed to become a little agitated as the professor began to answer: "I am afraid he is. That is another reason as to why I am cheering on for Ash, Damian is one of the most cunning and dishonest trainers I have ever met." Professor Sycamore then sighed as he said the next part while hearing the announcer exclaim something and the cheers of the audience were heard as Goodra managed to shoot a draco meteor into the air. "I honestly also think that Damian has been a bully to Ash this whole time, I am hoping that Ash can finally stand up for himself and the others like he said he would in the interview yesterday."

Mairin looked down at the field in awe to eye Ash. He seemed like a very admirable person to Mairin, mostly because he was very serious during the battle. The red head girl then noticed how the raven haired boy with a Pikachu at his side ordered for a bide which caused Goodra to turn on Hydreigon with a white beam of pure energy. Hydreigon then turned around and launched a powerful dragon shaped attack towards Goodra and when the two attacks collided, the field was enveloped in a lot of smoke. "Oh man Ash, good luck."

 **Looking down on the stadium:**

Decidueye used his amazing vision through his glasses to see that Rob was getting off his place as referee inside the smoke. The archer owl did not hesitate as he pulled back a quill and a vine to load the projectile. Looking down, the hooded owl then made his arrow glow purple before firing it down towards the battle field landing in front of Rob. The referee for the battle noticed this and stepped back into his original position as Decidueye smirked and looked towards Night, who was waving him a thumbs up.

Just then, a helicopter blew by on top of Decidueye and caused the poor Alolan starter to stagger back and fall on his head to then slide off the roof of the stadium and end up in a free fall. "DUDEYE!" Decidueye shouted as he flapped his wings and prevented his falling from becoming dangerous. The archer owl then looked back towards the helicopter that had just zoomed past above him and then loaded another arrow on his vine. The archer owl did not even blink as he sniped the shot to his the front windshield of the flying machine. The helicopter then began to stagger a little as Decidueye laughed at himself and flew back up to his station. As soon as he reached it, he could not see under him because there were rain clouds blocking his view.

"Decidueye…" Decidueye sweat dropped as he adjusted his view to be able to look well into the arena and beyond the rain clouds.

 **At the battlefield:**

"Goodra, let it go!" Ash shouted as he pointed forward to the destroyed portation of deforestation.

"GOOOOOOOOODDDRRRAAAA!"

"Use dragon pulse!"

"DREIGON!"

" **BOOM!"** the middle of the stadium was involved in a large explosion that left the smoke piling up in all directions. Ash noticed something come down from the sky, it looked like a purple arrow, but the raven haired trainer dismissed it as he looked back across the field to see that Hydreigon was unharmed and Goodra was still standing tall. "Use tri attack!" Damian shouted to which the dark hydra began to make his three heads charge up three elemental beams that shot towards Goodra.

" _Uh oh, Goodra was just hit with lightning, fire, and ice!"_

"Pika!"

"Oh no! Goodra!" Ash shouted as he noticed that as soon as the small explosion that surrounded Goodra was gone, the slimy dragon was frozen from the head down with ice. Damian smirked at this as Ash then pointed at the sky with bright gleaming eyes: "Use rain dance!"

"GOOOOO!" Goodra's green eyes sparkled as he then made a large battlecry that summoned some rain to begin to fall from the trees above. Noticing this, Ash smiled as he then felt the small sprinkling develop into real drops of rain that were falling on him and Goodra. "DRAAA!" Goodra shouted as he he caused the ice to shatter in all directions. As soon as that happened, the dragon type briefly glowed green as he then stood back up tall and proud while facing the Unovan pseudo legendary.

" _Goodra just broke out of the ice just because of the rain!"_

"Now Goodra, use thunder!" Goodra charged up his electric attack has he began to glow in electricity. The beam then streaked through the destroyed trees and within seconds managed to land on Hydreigon, the latter wincing in pain because of the electricity.

"Ground your tail," Damian said calmly as he looked across the field. Hydreigon got to work fast as he made his tail dig into the ground which then caused the electricity to stop hurting his dark and dragon type pokemon. Ash gritted his teeth as he saw this, he was not predicting such a smart way of avoiding his own electricity. "Now what Ash?" Damian taunted. "Goodra can't do anything now!"

" _Now what? Grounding his tail like a groundwire, Hydreigon will not take any damage from thunder! What an amazing plan by Damian!"_

Ash just narrowed his eyes, "Yes he can and the best part is that you can't move now!" Damian flinched at this as he then noticed how Hydreigon's grounded tail prevented the dark type from moving. With bright eyes and putting his arm out, Ash made a devastating move: "Use draco meteor!" Goodra made a huge battle cry as he charged up an orange orb in his mouth that swirled with power. The slimy pokemon then looked up towards the rain and released the insane attack upwards in an attempt to conceal it in the clouds. As soon as the orb disappeared, the crowd was silent until there was a lot of commotion when the numerous meteors began to fall from the sky.

"Get out of there!" Damian shouted with a panicked voice as he noticed that Hydreigon was struggling to get out. "Argh!" Damian grunted in annoyance as he noticed that Hydreigon was stuck to the ground with his tail grounded.

"Dreigon!" Hydreigon muttered as he was ejected from the ground and into the air with a dazed expression.

" _What a counter attack!"_

"Now use thunder!"

"GOOODRAAAA!" Goodra shouted as he made his crackling electricity bolt through the rain and pierce the black and purple dragon that was struggling to get back up. Hydreigon staggered as he fell to the ground and panted heavily. Damian called out to his pokemon that surprisingly got back up, Ash knowing that the hydra was far from being defeated.

"Use thunder once more!" Ash shouted as he threw his hand out.

"Use brutal swing!" Damian ordered. Hydreigon got on the air and rushed through the rain to make his two hands glow purple. The large three headed pseudo then shocked the gooey pokemon that was charging up electricity as he swung his arms around to slam his purple limbs into Goodra.

" _Goodra was just hit extremely badly! What can Ash do about this?"_

"Gooo!" Goodra grunted as he stumbled back in front of Ash with his hands in the ground and nicks appearing on his body. "Goodra…" Goodra muttered to notice that Ash has been gritting his teeth so much because of the battle.

The raven haired boy looked down at the edge of the trainer's platform and the battlefield to then clench his fist in frustration on what to do. "Goodra, prepare yourself," Ash said as he pumped his fist behind him. "When you get a chance, use your powerful bide in order to absorb the damage." The purple dragon nodded at this as he looked onwards to the field to notice that a dragon pulse was directed in his direction. When the colorful attack collided, Goodra winced in pain as he put a hand over face to then have the claw chomp down on his arm that caused an explosion around Goodra. When the smoke cleared, there was a blood red aura around the pokemon that Ash then raised his hand into the air: "Let's GO!"

GOOOO! DRRAAAA!" Goodra shouted as he released a white beam of energy in the direction of Hydreigon.

Damian flinched as he saw this and raised his hand into the air as well, "Fly Hydreigon!" Hydreigon pushed off from the ground and with his corrupted wings began to fly upwards thus avoiding the attack which crashed down into the ground below Hydreigon and caused and explosion combined with debris from the crashed down trees. "Now throw the trees towards Goodra!"

"Hydra!" Hydreigon exclaimed as he grabbed tree branches with his hand-like arms and then tossed them towards Goodra.

" _Whoa! Hydreigon is now using the trees as a way to take down Goodra!"_

"Look out!" Ash shouted, but unfortunately for the purple dragon, it was too late as the attack collided and Goodra stumbled back with a completely dazed expression in front of Ash. "Goodra, come on! I know you can keep going!"

"Goodra…" Goodra muttered to himself as he tried to get back up with barely any energy. The dragon slumped back down but caught himself as he had one eye open and a very trembling attitude towards the battle.

 **At the stands:**

Serena watched as Goodra slowly got up with a lot of difficulty and then stood in front of Ash as the rain clouds began to clear. "There goes the rain," Clemont said as he watched Goodra and Hydreigon interchange a thunder and dragon pulse in the middle of the field to then cause a large and devastating explosion that left both pokemon on the ground, but slowly getting back up and staring down each other.

"This is so frustrating, specially for Ash," Calem said as he looked down closer to the battlefield. "Ash has been training hard for this battle, but that Hydreigon just won't go down to anything!"

"It seems like if Greninja and Sceptile did no damage at all, and Goodra is still struggling too much with it," Trevor implied as he put a hand to his chin. "If only Goodra could turn things around."

"Knocking out Goodra is the biggest advantage that Damian can get," Brock said as he turned attentions towards where he was. "Hydreigon is what Damian needs to knock out Goodra, and if that happens, it could knock down Ash's confidence and maybe even cause Ash to ultimately be defeated."

"But Ash won't lose," Serena said with clenched fists. "I know he can win, Ash can defeat that Hydreigon!"

"But even if he does, what other pokemon do you think that Damian could have? It took two pokemon to knock down Darmanitan and it is taking three for Hydreigon. Ash's pokemon cannot get too tired because then he will end up with very debilitated pokemon," Tierno said.

Shauna sighed as she looked at Serena, "I still think that Ash can find a way." Serena looked back up to her friend with hope and smiled thankfully to see someone that was keeping her hopes up. Serena had to admit, she did not see Ash getting very far with Damian, but she wanted the raven haired boy to win so badly, she wanted Ash to somehow emerge the victor regardless of how it happened.

"Go Ash!"

"Nenne!" Bonnie and Dedenne shouted towards the raven haired trainer as they looked towards the field.

Serena then looked onto the field and stood up with determination, "Come on Ash! Get Damian back for everything he has ever done!"

 **At the battlefield:**

"There has to be a way…" Ash thought to himself as he then had his thoughts interrupted by another command:

"Hydreigon, use dragon rush!"

Ash saw how the dark and dragon type hydra began to charge up his body in a blue glow to then begin to charge Goodra. The slimy dragon was on the ground and extremely weakened by the attack. Ash put his fist out and shouted, "Goodra! Put everything you have into this thunder!"

"Goodra…" Goodra shouted as he looked towards Hydreigon and began to make his surroundings crackle in electricity which Ash knew could be the only attack he can use to prevent getting slammed on by the attack. The electric beam shot forward and slowed down Hydreigon, but the latter still was edging himself on Goodra, seeing this, Ash gave a command that he knew would either work or fail. The crowd cheering evermore powerful which indicated Ash of amusement people were having to see that the battle was nearing its climax.

"Bide!"

Goodra stopped his attack and let the dragon collide with him which made him skid in front of Ash across the dirt and the debris with a glow of red on himself which looking down at the ground with his ears hanging. Damian ordered for a dragon pulse which formed the shape of a dragon and began to charge at Goodra. The dragon shaped beam was only halfway from the way to the slimy dragon before Ash then put his hand into the air and signaled for Goodra to release the bide. "Gooo…" Goodra staggered as he charged the beam and then sank more to his knees. Goodra though, he got his face to look back upwards to Hydreigon and then launched the large white beam that interacted with the dragon shaped beam.

"Oh man…" Ash gritted his teeth as he saw the stalemate cause a huge shockwave echo through the stadium which raised the volume of the cheering and the excitement of everyone watching.

" **ROAR!"** The dragon beam made a roar like sound as it suddenly grew bigger and then rushed through the field towards Goodra, who had his green eyes gleaming with awe as the attack came closer. " **BOOM!"** a huge explosion happened in front of Ash which caused the raven haired trainer to cover his face as his scarf waved violently. The smoke did not take long to clear, but when it did, Ash saw Goodra on the ground completely motionless… Knocked out.

" _It seems that Goodra has been knocked out! Wait, what is going on?"_

"Use dragon pulse once again!" Damian shouted to which Hydreigon began to charge up the attack to then fire it to streak across the entire arena to which Rob was smirking with a satisfied face.

" _It appears that the referee has not made the call yet!"_

The stands were murmuring to themselves in confusion as they saw Ash run into the field covered with trees and branches, who was putting everything he had into running to protect Goodra while Pikachu was watching with wide eyes. The same pokeball on Ash's belt shook more and more powerfully. "Goodra, I am here," Ash said as he put himself with his back towards the attack, not wanting to see it come into contact with him. After a couple of seconds, the raven haired trainer opened his eyes expecting an attack, but he then heard an explosion come from behind him. Looking at the bat on the ground struggling to get up, Ash noticed what happened: "Noivern no!"

"Noi!" Noivern shouted as he got up from the attack and shook his head to then shoot a boomburst into the air: "VEEEERRRRNNNN!"

" _Noivern has come to the rescue!"_

 **With Decidueye:**

The hooded owl watched as the large bat shot a boomburst right in his direction. "DUEYE!" Decidueye grunted as he fell on his back to then see the bright sky above him while developing an irritation mark on his forehead. Decidueye definitely did not appreciate getting blown away by the powerful sound wave attack.

 **At the battlefield:**

Noivern flew next to Ash and grabbed Goodra's hand as Rob made his call: "Goodra is unable to battle, Hydreigon wins!" Rob them smiled as he proceeded to make another call: "There will now be a intermission to change fields." At the same time, Damian recalled Hydreigon back into his pokeball, which Ash noticed would probably be to rest the dark and dragon type.

" _Damian will be substituting his Hydreigon now! At the same time, Ash is now at a disadvantage!"_

"Thanks Goodra, return," Ash said as he made Goodra get transformed into red energy before going inside the pokeball and then disappearing. Ash clipped the pokeball on his belt and walked back to his platform with gritted teeth and clenched fists while Noivern followed close behind him. "... Grrrr…" Ash muttered to himself in agitation as he made his eyes show his burning anger. A closeup then zooms into his eye as the brown detail is shown with a bright gleam from the sun above.

 **At the stands:**

"Poor Goodra," Shauna said as she saw the battlefield go down towards the ground to be changed for another one.

"Look at Ash," Brock said as he clenched his fist. "He looks extremely off, he may not battle the same way as before. I think his confidence may have been shattered too."

"Ash… What will you do now?" Serena muttered to herself along with the worried faces of the raven haired trainer's friends.

 **With Rob:**

Rob waited patiently until the battlefield he was on reached the bottom of the tracks. When that happened, the referee hopped down from the field and looked at the next one: a desert. He had to admit, it was very interesting to see what would happen during that battle as well.

Getting on, Rob noticed that he was starting to get elevated back towards the sounds of cheering and muttering. The announcer could also be heard from above as they rose to then be at the same level as they were before with the forest. This time in a desert.

 **At the battlefield:**

Ash looked across to notice that the second battlefield rose up to be a desert field. Something he was not expecting as there was a lot of sand, similar to the same battlefield that he had battled Hau in. At the same time, there were some places where there was cactus and ferns that were common to desert biomes.

" _The second half of the battle is in a desert field! Damian has an advantage and Ash cannot relax at this point, this will be a tough battle which I am excited to see!"_

Damian looked at Rob and the two nodded at each other as the blue haired boy took out a pokeball from his belt. "Go! Weavile!"

"Vile!" Weavile shouted as he landed on the sand with a very sinister look on his face while staring towards Ash. The raven haired trainer gritted his teeth as he noticed this, it was not a powerhouse brute, it was a speedy glass canon. Ash knew he would probably need something to counter the ice and dark type, which meant using a steel or fire type-

"NOI!" Noivern shouted next to Ash which made the raven haired trainer look at him with a puzzled expression. It looked like Noivern wanted to battle, but Ash did not like the idea because of the type disadvantage.

"Noivern? Wait, I don't think this is a good time for you to battle," Ash pleaded as he looked at the sound wave dragon. The big eared dragon stepped into the sand against Ash's will which made the raven haired trainer grit his teeth in frustration, but he then resigned to the fact and sighed, "Alright Noivern, I am counting on you!"

" _Ash has apparently been forced into using Noivern!"_

"Still can't control your pokemon?" Damian asked with a very intimidating tone. "Why don't you force him out of battle if you don't want to use such a pathetic pokemon like him?" This made Ash and Noivern's blood boil as it caused the black dragon to dig his claws into the sand as Ash clenched his fists.

"I can battle with whoever wants to!" Ash retaliated. Rob smirked as he saw this and then signaled to resume the battle. Ash was the first to move as he put his hand into the air and made the first attack: "Noivern, start this off by using boomburst!"

But what happened next was not boomburst at all…

"NOI!" Noivern shouted as he took flight and made himself glow gold before diving down towards Weavile. Noivern was using sky attack to Ash's surprise. 'What? Did he not pay attention to what I told him to do?'

" _Noivern is using sky attack instead of Boomburst like Ash ordered, is there a little bit of an obedience issue going on?"_

"Use double team!" Damian countered. Weavile got to work as he spread his claws out and made several cries that formed several copies of himself in front of Noivern. The sound wave dragon swooshed through the copies and ended up not being able to hit the real Weavile, who was now above Noivern with a very lethal look on his face. "Use night slash!" Damian ordered as he put his fist out. Weavile made a purple blade with his hand and swung it around as he slammed the dark type move into Noivern's back which caused the young flying type to fall to the ground and make a cloud of sand. "Now use ice shard!"

"VILE!" Weavile shouted as he made several shards of ice spit out and go towards the sound wave dragon who was slowly getting back up.

"Noivern, counter it with supersonic!"

"Noi!" Noivern once again disobeyed the commands that the raven haired trainer was giving by jumping into the air and attempting to avoid the shards of ice. The thing that Ash knew from his battle with Wulfric is that the ice shards followed the target, and Noivern seemed to forget that as he tried to outmaneuver the ice shards. "Vern!" Noivern shouted as he fell in front of Ash dazed.

" _Noivern is hit once again!"_

"Pikapi!"

"Noivern are you alright?" Ash asked with a very confused tone to then see Noivern stretch out his wings and fly back into the air. "Argh Noivern! Come on! Listen to me!" Ash just watched helplessly as Noivern attempted to go in a head on collision with giga impact from Weavile only to stagger back and fly into the air above the cheering stands. Ash noticed how every so often, Noivern would then turn back around and launch a boomburst towards the field which caused sand to pick up in devastating ways that even caused Ash to back his view away to then see that the battlefield was being destroyed. "Noivern!"

"Your pokemon are pathetic," Damian said as Noivern landed in front of Ash while growling. Damian then smirked as he turned his gaze back towards the ground and at his Weavile, "Unlike your Noivern, my Weavile actually obeys me." Damian then gave a hearty laugh, "After completely crushing Noivern, you will be down to two pokemon while I will still have four on my side to take down your Pikachu and your Charizard with ease, like we did to that cocky Sceptile, your slow Greninja, and that Goodra that only really takes hits like a punching bag."

" _There is more tension between the trainers now, Ash's side seems to be very unhappy!"_

Noivern and Pikachu both tensed up their muscles as the Kanto native then put on a defensive stance: "Oh yea! Well what tells you that you can judge my poke- friends like that?"

"Nothing," Damian said with a very genuine tone. "It is just the truth."

 **At the stands:**

"Can Damian not be so much of a douche bag?" Brock asked while he crossed his arms in front of him.

"I just want to strangle him," Calem said while looking down. "Specially if he causes me to lost to opportunity to have a rematch with my friend."

"Oh Ash, be strong for us," Serena muttered to herself as she clenched her ribbon.

Shauna noticed once again the honey blonde's distressed look and put a hand on her shoulder. Serena noticed this and smiled sadly to the brunette to then look down at the arena with a very alarmed to look Ash completely motionless in his trainer's platform. "Ash needs our support right now guys," Shauna said. Everyone turned to the brunette who was pumping her fist. "If Ash can go through many things, then he can do this!"

"She's right!" Clemont smirked as he stood up from his seat. "Ash, I don't usually do this, but go and win this battle! Use the science to your advantage!"

"Oh my goodness big brother," Bonnie sighed as she also stood up. "GET THEM ASH!"

"DON'T GIVE UP UNTIL THE VERY END!" Serena shouted with a very determined tone as she cupped her mouth. The cheering crowd was also showing support towards Ash, but it seemed as if the raven haired trainer was ignoring it, like he was too lost in his thoughts.

 **At the battlefield:**

"Grrrr…." Ash grunted as he shadowed his eyes in his cap. He did not want to have to face any sort of criticism, and he wanted to stand up for himself, but he knew he couldn't… Ash felt a team roll down his cheek and down his chin to then fall into the ground below him.

"Pika?" Pikachu asked through the murmuring crowd. Ash just raised his cap to expose his eyes, which were now filled with fire and anger, something that Pikachu had not seen since the raven haired trainer had been personally attacked. Pikachu and Noivern then gave a very shocked look towards Ash as he noticed that scarfed trainer pump his fist.

"Use boomburst Noivern! And this time actually listen to me!" Noivern charged up the boomburst and Ash noticed that the dragon was actually listening to him for once as the attacked streaked like a tornado of sound effects that was on its way towards Weavile.

"Dodge it!" Damian shouted as Weavile jumped into the air. The transparent beam of sound rushed under the small ice and dark type pokemon to then slam into the opposite trainer box: _A direct hit on Damian._ Instantly seeing this, Ash, Noivern, and Pikachu all had their mouths go agape as Damian came out of the smoke with a very agitated look: "So you feel like you can kill me huh? Isn't that against the rules, Rob- Ref?"

Rob smirked at Damian's outburst and looked at the raven haired trainer with a smile, "Ash has to recall Noivern back into his pokeball or else he will forfeit the match!"

"PIKACHU!? PIKA PIKA!"

"NOI NOIVERN!?"

"WHAT!?" Ash asked as he heard more murmurs from the stands obviously not expecting such a call as he turned towards Rob, "Damian ordered for a dodge and he got hit! It was not our intention!"

" _We have been looking into this and apparently it was not Ash's intention to attack Damian. The referee has now forced Ash into switching? What is going on?"_

"Do you wish to file a complaint after you are forfeited from the match?" Rob taunted as he looked towards the other side of the desert. Ash gritted his teeth at this as he then slowly pulled out a pokeball from his belt.

"Come on Noivern," Ash said as he showed the dragon the pokeball.

"Noi! NOIVERN!" Noivern shouted with a very agitated tone as he felt the beam surround him and cause him to get helplessly sucked into the device.

Ash had to keep the pokeball closed with his hands in order to prevent it shooting open. Ash looked down at Pikachu with a sad face as he then noticed that he was putting Noivern inside of its pokeball against his own will. It made him hate himself for what he had done, it was like if he had forced Pikachu back into his pokeball: An act of betrayal in Ash's part. Ash sighed as he battled with the sound wave dragon to keep him inside the red and white ball, "Look Noivern, I know you did not want to be put inside, I understand that, but I want to give you an opportunity later, I promise it!"

The pokeball instantly stopped shaking and Ash knew what he had to do next as he looked back onto the field to see Weavile still in front of Damian with a crooked smile. "Ash, your anger is what will lead for you to lose this battle," Damian said. "You are out of my league, the only reason why I lost the first two battles was so that I could understand your strategy and weaken you, now you have no chance!"

"I will just have to burn that anger then," Ash shouted as he pulled a pokeball in front of him with a very determined look. "Charizard!" Ash shouted as he then threw the ball frisbee styled into the battlefield. "I am counting on you!"

"Gruaw!" Charizard shouted as he appeared in front of Ash and flew into the air. The fire type with the mega pendant around his neck then encircled the desert before landing in front of the dark and ice type with a very fiery spirit. "GRRRUUUUAAAWWWW!" Charizard shouted as he looked directly at Damian and put on a battle stance.

" _Ash decides to pull out his Charizard now! Will things be able change now that his entire team had been used?"_

The crowd cheered, it was the first time that the raven haired trainer noticed that the stands were rooting for him. Ash then smiled as he grabbed the edge of his cap, "I don't need you to judge me Damian, I have everyone on my back." Ash then put his fist out: "Dragon claw!"

Damian was shocked at the speed in which the fire and flying type raced the field, he quickly put his hand out knowing that things could shift out of his control if he was not careful: "night slash!"

"GRUAW!/VILE!" Both pokemon shouted as they clashed in the middle of the field with their respective attacks. The sunlight beamed down on the pokemon as they made purple and green sparks shockwave in the desert arena. The two pokemon then staggered back to be in front of their distinct trainers. Weavile gritted his teeth as he looked at Charizard, the larger fire type was not one that would be overpowered easily.

"Take flight!" Ash ordered with a determined voice as he pointed upwards. The fire and flying type leaped into the air with ease as he then spread his wings and looked down towards the smaller clawed minion that was on the sand below. The Weavile fired off an ice shard towards Charizard which spiraled into the air and began to close in on the infernal dragon from five direction. Charizard saw this and narrowed his eyes as a mirage image of Ash showed the raven haired trainer who was crushing his hand into a fist in front of him as his scarf waved: "Use dragon claw!"

"GRUAWW!" Charizard shouted as he made his claws glow green and spin around to then swipe all of the ice shards down. "ROAR!" Charizard then cried as he then dived down towards the battlefield with green scaly claws. Pulling up while causing a pick up of sand, Charizard then began to swing his claws around to which Damian flinched.

"Use giga impact!"

"WEAVILE!" Weavile shouted as he made himself glow in an white and yellow swirling aura that then collided with the claws of the dragon type. Both pokemon gave battle cries, but Weavile seemed to then get an edge as he made his power increase. "VILE!" Weavile shouted as he made both his and Charizard's attack cancel. Weavile landed in front of his trainer and with one hand on the sand, indicated that he could still battle.

" _What a powerful resistance from Weavile!"_

"Now, Weavile go in with double team and then follow up with night slash!" Damian ordered with a quick tone. The entire stadium erupted into cheers as they saw that Weavile had surrounded Charizard with multiple copies, all that had purple blades which then charged towards the fire type in between.

"Charizard, ignite yourself with flare blitz!" Ash shouted as he pumped both of his fists. Charizard instantly glew on blue fire as he then stood still. The copies collided and caused an explosion from which Weavile appeared in front of Charizard with a dazed look. Ash then noticed a familiar shine on the ground, instantly identifying the glass shards like in the battle he had with Hau. Maybe there was a way in which he could use the glass to prevent getting hit…

"Use ice shard!" Weavile jumped into the air and launched the pieces of ice towards the fire type who was in the same place of the ground without any protection… _Unless._

"Charizard grab the glass shards under you and throw them towards the ice shards that are coming your way!"

"What?"

"GRUUUAWWW!" Charizard cried as he grabbed the glass from below him and swung his arms around to then have the blue ice interacting with the transparent gleaming shards of glass. They formed smaller crystals that then harmlessly fell into the ground which then gave Ash's opportunity to strike:

"Charizard go in with dragon claw!" Charizard did not waste time as he then made his claws and took flight to then strike the ice and dark type. The glass cannon was pushed back through the ground and ended up causing sand to be picked up. Surprisingly for the raven haired trainer, Weavile got back up with a very dazed expression, from the looks of it, the ice type was looking extremely fatigued from the battle.

" _Amazing! Ash used some glass shards to his advantage to strike Weavile!"_

 **At the stands:**

"Something doesn't seem right," Brock said as he put a hand to his chin. "If the only menacing thing that Damian has is Hydreigon, then why does Damian have a key stone on his sun glasses?"

"Wait? Are you implying that something more powerful than Hydreigon might be in the battle?" Trevor asked as Tierno flinched at the thought. It was clear, but hard to see, on the sun glasses at the side of the frames there was a glistening stone to the sunlight.

"If that pokemon is a counter to the rest of Ash's team, then how can Ash win?" Calem asked. I am sure that it is not Hydreigon though, last time I checked, Hydreigon can't mega evolve."

"But Damian has something that can mega evolve," Clemont replied as he looked down at the battlefield. "The fact that Ash has already used all of his pokemon and has one less than Damian is a big disadvantage!"

Looking at the scoreboard, it was clear: Ash had one less pokemon than Damian and he had also used all of his pokemon at least once in battle:

 **Ash:** _Goodra Greninja Sceptile_ Pikachu Noivern **Charizard**

 **Damian:** _Metagross Darmanitan_ (pokeball) (pokeball) Hydreigon **Weavile**

"It does not matter," Serena said as she looked down at the battlefield with a serious tone. The crowd was cheering, predominantly for Ash knowing that he was the underdog of the entire battle and definitely wanting him to get the edge. "Ash still has the advantage in one way. He has a team, something that Damian has not used yet. Hydreigon was the pokemon Damian used the most and that has to ultimately be his strongest, and the mega evolved pokemon can't be more powerful."

"What are you implying Serena?" Tierno asked with a confused expression to which everyone turned their attention to the honey blonde girl.

"That means that Ash has a team of pokemon that have continuously battled, it means his team must be stronger overall," Serena replied as she pumped her fist.

"I still worry about what that mega evolved pokemon is, but Serena does have a point," Calem said as he crossed his arms. "The way in which Damian is battling means that he is reaching his limit, can he even predict Ash's strategy anymore?"

"I do see where this is going," Tierno replied.

"Ash seems to be more unpredictable now than he was earlier on in the battle, despite not having the advantage, he does know how to keep Damian from reading him now," Shauna completed as the group kept watching the battle with hope that the raven haired trainer would win.

 **At the battlefield:**

"Alright Damian, how do you like Charizard now?" Ash taunted as he watched Weavile stagger back from being hit with a thunderpunch. "Not so pathetic as you once thought, right?"

"Still as pathetic as ever!" Damian grunted as he then put his fist out. "Use giga impact!"

"Flare blitz!"

"GRRRUUUAAAWWW!"

"VVVVVIIILLLLEEE!"

Both pokemon made their respective auras and closed the gap in a matter of seconds. The two pokemon stood at a stalemate for a couple of seconds, but then one pokemon staggered and fell back in front of his trainer. "Charizard, go in with dragon claw!" Ash shouted as he watched Weavile on his knees in front of Damian.

"Gruaw!" Charizard shouted as he took flight and made his claws glow green while looking down at Weavile.

"Weavile get up and use night slash!" Damian ordered in a panicked voice as he saw the incoming attack. Weavile looked up and made his purple blade to then jump up in the direction of Charizard. The dark and ice type then leaped off towards Charizard and instantly interlocked his purple blade in the infernal dragon's green claws.

"ROAR!" Charizard shouted as he pulled back his claw a little bit to then thrust forward and follow through. Weavile was instantly ejected from the collision and ended up landing on the ground in front of Damian with a large explosion which picked up the sand from the ground. "GRRRUUUUAWWWWW!" Charizard shouted as he pumped his fists and roared victoriously. Damian looked shocked as in front of him was a knocked out Weavile who was groaning something clearly inaudible to everyone else in the stadium.

Rob gritted his teeth as he raised his hand: "Weavile is unable to battle, Charizard wins!"

" _And it is over for Weavile! Ash managed to tie the match!"_

"Alright Charizard, you were great, return!" Ash shouted as he recalled his fire type back into his pokeball. The large fire type roared once more as he returned back into his device, which was later put back into Ash's belt. Damian stayed silent as he recalled his Weavile into his pokeball which Ash found kind of sad as he seemed disappointed in Weavile's power. Ash though, knowing his options, did not want to hurt Noivern any more than he already was, so he pointed forward, "Pikachu, I choose you!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he jumped into the sand and began to collect electricity on his cheeks. "Pika Pikachu!"

" _Ash substitutes his Charizard for Pikachu! How will Damian respond?"_

Damian did not even hesitate to take out a pokeball as he then threw it forward: "Gigalith let's go!" The pokeball then opened up to a large blue and red rock formation that stood on four legs with a clearly menacing stance. Instantly, Ash saw as a whip of the sand then began to go around which caused him to instantly notice what was going on: sandstream. Before he knew it, there was a storm of sand enveloping him and Pikachu.

" _A Gigalith against Pikachu, this will be an interesting battle of sizes, although it seems Ash has learned to adapt to sandstorms during this league!"_

"Pika…" Pikachu groaned as he felt the sandstorm once again during this league. Ash did not look shocked as he noticed that this was the third time that he was against a sandstorm, and to make things more interesting, it was the second pokemon that Ash had battled with sandstream as the ability.

 **At the stands:**

"Sandstream? Another sandstorm? Ash's got this!" Calem smirked. "We know that all Damian has left is Hydreigon and the other mystery pokemon, but I am sure that Pikachu can take this one out!"

"He's right, but I still feel like it could be trouble for Pikachu if Ash is not careful, keep that in mind," Brock said as he looked towards the battle and narrowed his eyes seeing that the visibility was poor from the point of view of everyone in the stands and even the announcer since there was just a large cloud of sand surrounding the entire arena.

 **At the battlefield:**

"Hmmmmm…" Ash muttered as he recalled to his previous battles during this conference. 'Gigalith is stronger than a Tyranitar when it comes to physical attack and physical defense… But it is weaker against special moves, I am expecting some sort of strong moves from this guy.'

Rob signaled to start the battle, so Damian was the one that gave the first move: "Use hyper beam!" Gigalith stayed still as he charged up a very large dark gaia beam of energy in front of his mouth and then expelled it in the direction of Pikachu who was still struggling with the sand storm in front of him.

"Dodge it Pikachu!" Pikachu shot open his eyes as he then jumped to the right of the scene to which the hyperbeam crashed into the ground in front of Ash and caused an explosion that was big enough to make Ash flinch. Freeing himself from the blast, the raven haired trainer then looked at the ground and noticed that there was no water or anything that could help him with the sandstorm, this meant that he would need to wait out the sandstorm before he did anything or he could go ahead and do the same strategy he used against Trevor. Knowing this, Ash smirked as he called out to his pokemon: "Pikachu, can you hear me?"

"Pika!"

"Go for an electric overdrive now!"

"Pika pika pika pika!" Pikachu shouted as he made the rain clouds that began to appear slowly in the sky. Pikachu then ignited himself in electricity as the sandstorm began to clear around him. "PIKA!" Pikachu shouted as he summoned lightning that then slammed into Gigalith, but the rock type got back up to see that Pikachu, covered in electricity had jumped into the air and was on its way to send the barrage of lightning land towards Gigalith.

" _The sandstorm is over just like it was predicted, but what can Damian do to stop the powerful attack?"_

"Use stone edge!" Damian shouted while putting his fist out. The large rock type made a battle cry as he made the blue rocks appear in front of him and go towards the electric mouse. Just as Pikachu was about to slam his electric fist into the sand, a blue rock shot out of the ground and slammed into Pikachu's thoracic cavity this launching the smaller creature into the air.

"Pikachu!" Ash exclaimed as his best friend landed in front of him. "Are you alright Pikachu?" Ash asked with a very worried expression on his face as he noticed that the rain had prevented the sandstorm from going any further, but the rain had stopped after Pikachu was hit, and to make things worse, the attack did not go through. All Ash got was the sandstorm to be forcefully eradicated. "Pikachu,you still feel like you got this?"

"Pika pikachu!" Pikachu shouted as he got on all fours without missing a beat.

Ash then flinched as he heard Damian made his next call: "Go for a stone edge again!"

"GIGA!"

The rocks got closer and closer, but Ash knew what he had to do in order to prevent Pikachu from getting hit: "Pikachu use iron tail and use it to slam your way up into the air!"

"PIKA! PIKACHU!" Pikachu shouted as he swung his hardened tail around and then down cut on a blue stone that was in front of him. Pikachu then saw himself getting high up into the air and overlooking the sandy arena as he then smirked down. "Pikachu!"

A mirage image of Ash then gave Pikachu the next command as the electric mouse charged himself up in electricity: "Use reverse counter shield!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu exclaimed as he began to spin and send a bolt of electricity down towards Gigalith in a spiraling matter. Gigalith groaned in pain as he sank a little after receiving the continuous attack. "PIKA!" Pikachu shouted to another command of iron tail from Ash to which he slammed down on Gigalith's head with a powerful steel type move that made the rock type stagger a little.

" _What an amazing combination of moves to hit Gigalith! Extremely well done by Ash and Pikachu!"_

"We were not finished yet, you ready to try and keep up with us?" Ash asked with a very mature and commanding voice towards Damian, the blue haired trainer starting to look more frustrated by the minute.

"Grrr…" Damian grunted as he then put his hand out. "How do you like this move? Specially to your pesky electric type! Earthquake!"

"GIGALITH!" Gigalith shouted as he made the ground begin to shake and break apart from below. It was something that Pikachu was looking wide eyed at as he then noticed that Ash was not flinching at all, in fact he was smirking.

" _Earthquake? This will be devastating for Pikachu!"_

Ash pointed forward in a very commanding matter and did not even bother to second guess his attack, "Use quick attack!" Pikachu did not know what Ash was up to, but he went with it as he made a trail of white power circle around him. Pikachu then shot out like a bullet through the shaking and cracking earth as he avoided the growing cracks that the ground type move was causing, this made Ash become even more determined as he noticed that there were some rocks that were being thrown around by the shaking earth which caused him to smile and point upwards: "Now Pikachu use iron tail on those rocks and get into the air once more!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he took a small leap and then front flipped to slam his tail into the rock and then get propelled into the sunny sky while then arching down and diving towards the rock type pokemon below.

Damian flinched as he predicted an oncoming attack from Ash, it was clear that this would have to be one of the most devastating attacks if it actually landed: "Use hyper beam straight up!"

Ash did not waste time as he put his fist out: "Thunderbolt on yourself!"

"GIGA!" A large beam swirled from the rock type's head to then shoot upwards towards the direction of the electric type that was falling towards the ground with his electricity beginning to make an aura of lightning and high voltage.

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as a close up of his gleaming eye shows determination and spirit as the two attacks collide. Pikachu being the projectile in this case began to run through the hyper beam with all of his strength to approach the rock formation in front of him. Pikachu then staggered a little as he got closer to Gigalith and then eventually made the attack be right in front of the rock type's face, cutting away at the dark draconic beam.

" _Pikachu is catching up to the hyper beam! Can Ash pull the finisher?"_

"NOW USE IRON TAIL!" Ash shouted while pointing forward.

"PIKACHU!" Pikachu shouted as he then made his tail glow white once more to then swing it around and then slam right into the Gigalith.

" **BOOM!"** Ash and Damian both covered their eyes to the large shockwave that shook their clothes and also flickered the lights and scoreboard of the stadium because of billowing electricity.

"Pikachu!" Ash shouted in panic as he felt his scarf waving in front of him. Damian stayed silent as he flinched a lot to the explosion in front of him. The stadium was cheering with a lot of excitement as the smoke began to clear. One look at the field made Ash throw his fist into the air with victory and pride. "YES!"

"PIKA!" Pikachu cried covered in nicks as he pumped his fist in front of Ash, obviously the electric mouse not being defeated.

Rob looked at Gigalith and once again gritted his teeth in frustration as he looked at the state of the rock type. "Gigalith is unable to battle," Rob said with an unamused tone. "Pikachu… wins!" Damian silently recalled his rock type because of this as he then clenched his fists in irritation.

" _And it happened! Pikachu has come out victorious!"_

 **With Professor Sycamore:**

"Yes Ash!" Mairin cheered as she hugged Chespie. It was not expected that Pikachu would pull off such an amazing strategy to defeat such a colossal pokemon and Mairin began to feel a large admiration towards the raven haired trainer, who was celebrating with Pikachu.

Professor Sycamore smiled down at the battlefield as he saw this and sighed, "He got the lead again, impressive battling from his part."

 **At the stands:**

Night smirked as he looked down at the field and then turned to Jolteon, "It does not get better than that, doesn't it?"

"Jolteon!"

Serena was out of her seat at this point with a pumped fist: "Alright Ash!" She shouted through the cheering crowd as she felt the sun light beam down on her face.

"That was impressive, I have to say that as an electric type specialist," Clemont admitted as he looked proud of his friend on the field.

 **At the battlefield:**

"Your win streak ends here, Ash," Damian said with a very serious tone. "GO BLASTOISE!"

Damian threw the pokeball into the air, which then opened to a flashing light that then exposed a large blue turtle with a brown shell that had two water shooters on either side, who also had a mega stone on his left hand.

" _And Damian has now revealed the last pokemon of his team next to Hydreigon! It is a powerful looking Blastoise!"_

Ash smirked at this as he looked at Pikachu and nodded and pumped a fist in front of him, "Pikachu and I will then have to show you how it's done!" Ash then put his hand out with gleaming auburn eyes: "Use thunderbolt!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he ran forward a little and then hopped into the air with crackling electricity while making a back flip to then shoot electricity with determined and gleaming eyes towards the large turtle through the sand. "PIKA… CHUUUUUUUUUUUU!"

The scene then freezes with Ash and Damian opposing each other, Blastoise and Hydreigon with Damian as Pikachu, Noivern, and Charizard were with Ash. The climax is right around the corner!

 **A/N: How will this battle end? Will Ash win? Will Damian ultimately humiliate Ash into a depressive state? The end is soon to come for the battle, and this is definitely something that everyone has been waiting for!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

* * *

 **Responding to some reviews:**

 **Ninjafang1331: Thanks for reviewing! I am glad you enjoyed!**

 **NickThePikachu2: But what happens if Ash loses instead? Uh oh...**

 **Amourshipper35: Let's see what happens next chapter, and spoiling is not orthodox in my story ;)!**

 **Ryan: NOOIIIIIVVVVVVEEEERRRRRNNNN! GOOOOOOODDDDRRAAAAAA!**

 **Thor94: IDK, maybe Diantha is also corrupt, who knows? Anyways, Goodra didn't do much... RIP! Glad you enjoyed and thanks for reviewing!**

 **Guest 1: Amourshipping FTW!**

 **TFlameNeedsAMega: Maybe I will give a story on Clemont and Korrina later, right now we are focused on ze Kalos League! I am glad you enjoyed, but FYI, I already finished this book a some time ago, so there will be a conclusion to this story, at least this arc! Thanks for reviewing!**


	45. Chapter 45

**In case you did not see the end of last time:**

" **BOOM!"** Ash and Damian both covered their eyes to the large shockwave that shook their clothes and also flickered the lights and scoreboard of the stadium because of billowing electricity.

"Pikachu!" Ash shouted in panic as he felt his scarf waving in front of him. Damian stayed silent as he flinched a lot to the explosion in front of him. The stadium was cheering with a lot of excitement as the smoke began to clear. One look at the field made Ash throw his fist into the air with victory and pride. "YES!"

"PIKA!" Pikachu cried covered in nicks as he pumped his fist in front of Ash, obviously the electric mouse not being defeated.

Rob looked at Gigalith and once again gritted his teeth in frustration as he looked at the state of the rock type. "Gigalith is unable to battle," Rob said with an unamused tone. "Pikachu… wins!" Damian silently recalled his rock type because of this as he then clenched his fists in irritation.

" _And it happened! Pikachu has come out victorious!"_

 **With Professor Sycamore:**

"Yes Ash!" Mairin cheered as she hugged Chespie. It was not expected that Pikachu would pull off such an amazing strategy to defeat such a colossal pokemon and Mairin began to feel a large admiration towards the raven haired trainer, who was celebrating with Pikachu.

Professor Sycamore smiled down at the battlefield as he saw this and sighed, "He got the lead again, impressive battling from his part."

 **At the stands:**

Night smirked as he looked down at the field and then turned to Jolteon, "It does not get better than that, doesn't it?"

"Jolteon!"

Serena was out of her seat at this point with a pumped fist: "Alright Ash!" She shouted through the cheering crowd as she felt the sun light beam down on her face.

"That was impressive, I have to say that as an electric type specialist," Clemont admitted as he looked proud of his friend on the field.

 **At the battlefield:**

"Your win streak ends here, Ash," Damian said with a very serious tone. "GO BLASTOISE!"

Damian threw the pokeball into the air, which then opened to a flashing light that then exposed a large blue turtle with a brown shell that had two water shooters on either side, who also had a mega stone on his left hand.

" _And Damian has now revealed the last pokemon of his team next to Hydreigon! It is a powerful looking Blastoise!"_

Ash smirked at this as he looked at Pikachu and nodded and pumped a fist in front of him, "Pikachu and I will then have to show you how it's done!" Ash then put his hand out with gleaming auburn eyes: "Use thunderbolt!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he ran forward a little and then hopped into the air with crackling electricity while making a back flip to then shoot electricity with determined and gleaming eyes towards the large turtle through the sand. "PIKA… CHUUUUUUUUUUUU!"

The scene then freezes with Ash and Damian opposing each other, Blastoise and Hydreigon with Damian as Pikachu, Noivern, and Charizard were with Ash. The climax is right around the corner!

 **A/N: Ok, this is a very awaited chapter as it finally concludes this three part battle!**

 **I know that making these battles this long make them very interesting and it is really fun to write them!**

 **I am sure that this chapter will also be a fun one to write as it will be emotional and a way to develop all the characters that will be portrayed for the league.**

 **Will Ash be able to pull off this win against Damian after being able to overcome most of the pokemon on his team? We will just have to find out, we are starting with Pikachu against Blastoise, the water type has a mega stone and it is sure not going to go down very easily. I still believe in Pikachu! Let's go guys, let's cheer on for Ash to finally defeat the bully and stand up for himself and his friends!**

 **Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this last chapter (or not enjoy, we will see what the outcome says to your enjoyment)!**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or "Any Other Way"**

Chapter 45- A decisive battle! Ash vs Damian's Climax!

 **At the stands:**

"A Blastoise?" Tierno asked with a surprised tone as he watched the large turtle emerge from his pokeball to be in front of Ash. "Wait, is that a mega stone on his arm?"

"It is! That is what we have to worry about as well!" Brock concluded as he looked at Ash and Pikachu. "I hope that Pikachu will be able to weaken him too."

"I believe in Pikachu!" Bonnie shouted as she got out from her seat to pump her fist towards the arena that was cheering massively for the battle that was going on. Everyone watched as Ash called out for a thunderbolt with his hand out and then witnessed how Pikachu began to walk through the sand to then jump into the air.

 **At the battlefield:**

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he ran forward a little and then hopped into the air with crackling electricity while making a back flip to then shoot electricity with determined and gleaming eyes towards the large turtle through the sand. "PIKA… CHUUUUUUUUUUUU!" The bolt of electricity streaked through the sand and zigzagged the ground even frying one of the cactus before heading straight for Blastoise.

"Blastoise use rapid spin!" Damian countered. The large turtle made a battlecry and then retracted himself to his shell. The raven haired trainer flinched as he saw how the water type then began to spin and effectively manage with the thunderbolt that was being headed at him. Blastoise then kept spinning towards a very shocked Pikachu that was standing helplessly in the middle of the field. The large pokemon then slammed into Pikachu, which caused him to be pushed back and launched in front of Ash.

"Pika..." Pikachu grunted as he got to his knees and looked up with a very dazed expression on his face. "Pika pika!" Pikachu exclaimed as he got back on all fours with a very confident pose.

" _Pikachu is not giving up! This is truly a battle of endurance!"_

"Are you alright Pikachu?" Ash asked as he called out to the electric pokemon in front of him. Pikachu nodded which made the entire stadium cheer because of how sturdy Pikachu was being for this battle. Ash smirked at this as he put a fist out in front of him, "Alright then! Pikachu use quick attack!"

"Pika!" Pikachu roared as he made his body have a white gleam around it. "Pika pika pika pika pika pika pika!" Pikachu shouted as he ran across the sand with an attempt to knock down the water type. Midway across the entire arena though, Damian made his hand go up into the air as he made his own Blastoise make a move that surprised Ash as well.

"Water pulse!"

"TOISE!" Blastoise shouted as he formed a blue ball of water above his head which was powered by his two canons. This ball of energy then shot out towards Pikachu, who's eyes widened as the attack approached with the gleam of the attack approaching.

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted in pain as he was blasted into the air with the spherical water type move.

Ash gasped at this but gritted his teeth as he then put a fist in a forty five degree angle into the sky: "Use thunderbolt!" Pikachu did not back down as he made the same battle cry he always does and made the bolt of electricity streak through the air once again and slam into Blastoise because of a surprise attack. Damian flinched as he saw this because this meant that they were now vulnerable to an attack. "Now Pikachu, keep going and use quick attack once again!"

"Not going to happen!" Damian shouted as he saw Pikachu zoom out like a speeding bullet and Blastoise got up. Noticing that there were some shards of glass due to the electric moves striking the sand, the blue haired trainer decided to go for the same tactic that Ash had used before. With gleaming eyes, Damian put his hand out and shouted: "Throw the shards at Pikachu!"

"TOISE!" Blastoise cried as he swept his arms through the ground and scooped up the loose shards. "BLASTOISE!" Blastoise shouted as he launched the crystals towards Pikachu.

Ash smirked at this as he closed his eyes with a look towards the ground before then rubbing under his nose and looking back up at Damian, "So you are the one that is using my tactics now, aren't you?" Ash then pumped his fist, "Pikachu hit them back with iron tail!" Pikachu made his tail glow white and he swung it around to then launch the attacks back at Blastoise. At this Damian flinched again knowing that his water type had just been hit by another attack without knowing how to respond, this frustrated the trainer with the mega stone on his sunglasses so much as he was not expecting Ash to have become good enough to rival his own power. Ash then pumped his left fist in front of his face and smiled as he then took his other fist and threw it forward: "Keep going and strike Blastoise with a powerful thunderbolt again!"

"Pika…. CHUUUUU!" Pikachu shouted as he launched the electric attack that had a lot of branches of electricity arching with the beam.

Damian gritted his teeth as he then pumped his fist, "Use ice beam!" Blastoise looked up and this time used his cannons to thoroughly shoot a freezing beam towards the electric beam. The two attacks collided and then caused a cloud of smoke to appear in the top of the field from which Pikachu landed in front of Ash. "Cool him down with another ice beam!"

"TOISE!" Blastoise shouted as he charged up another blue beam that then streaked forward and hit the electric mouse head on.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu squealed in pain as he got hit backwards.

" _Oh no! And Pikachu has gotten hit by two ice beams in a row! Is this it for the valiant mouse?"_

"Pikachu NO!" Ash shouted in panic as he watched Pikachu on the ground get back up to his knees, but then stand up weakly with a lot of nicks around his body. "Pikachu, do not give up, use iron tail!" Pikachu got up and made his tail glow white before he then shot upwards into the air and then swung down towards Blastoise who was standing with narrowed eyes in front of Damian. The electric mouse was about to strike the water type, but then Damian made a move that Ash could not believe that he had fallen for the trap.

"Rapid spin!" Blastoise began to spin as Pikachu down cut on him. Ash clenched his fists as he saw this in worry as the water type made the electric type get caught on his shell. "Now release him!" Damian commanded while putting his hand out. At this the turtle spun around with enough power to then swing around the mouse get launched into the air. Ash had his mouth agape as he saw this and then witnessed how the blue haired trainer stood in a victory pose to pump both of his fists: "Finish him dragon pulse!" Blastoise made this two canons then merge power as he then launched the beam shaped like a dragon towards Pikachu. The beam closed in on the electric mouse and a closeup of Pikachu's eye portrayed the incoming beam roaring towards him. " **ROAR!"** The dragon pulse then cried as there was a large explosion in the middle of the air that followed with a shockwave that made Ash's scarf wave.

"Pikachu no!" Ash shouted with worry as he then noticed his electric type land on the ground with a dazed expression and completely unconscious.

"Pika…" Pikachu grunted as Rob put his hand in the air.

"Pikachu is unable to battle, Blastoise wins!" Rob declared as the crowd roared.

" _And we are now in a two against two situation! This battle will not be over, until it is truly over!"_

Ash walked onto the sand and came up to his Pikachu who was on the ground. "Pikachu, are you alright?" Ash asked as he cradled the small mouse in his arms. The electric type slowly opened his eyes and nodded thus indicating to the Kanto native that he was completely fine. "Thank you Pikachu, you were amazing," Ash said as he then looked back up towards Damian and Rob.

"So, only the two most pathetic pokemon left on your team, aren't they?" Damian taunted as Ash attempted to ignore the fact that his opponent called his pokemon trash once again. Ash then turned around and began to walk into the trainer's platform which had some sand blown onto it, but other than that was clean. Ash then set Pikachu down on the other side of the trainer's platform so that he would be protected from any attacks that could affect the raven haired trainer himself.

 **At the stands:**

"Poor Pikachu," Serena sighed as she grabbed her ribbon. "Come on Ash, do your best and beat him!"

"I think Pikachu may have weakened Blastoise a lot, but I still feel like Ash can't relax because of how much his pokemon have battled," Clemont replied as he looked towards Serena. "Serena, didn't you say that Hydreigon was a pokemon that Ash had not been able to defeat yet?"

"The fact is, Ash only had one other battle with Damian after they crossed paths again," Serena then sighed. "Ash challenged him to a battle and Hydreigon, then a Zweilous, was the only pokemon he battled, and no Ash did not get to defeat him either," Serena clenched her fists as a side view of her face showed her sparkling blue eyes and the waving honey blonde hair. "It would be amazing for Ash if he defeats him, and I know that he can."

"He has to be careful though, both of Ash's pokemon are dragon types at their full potential, Charizard when mega evolved," Calem replied as he narrowed his eyes. "At the same time, keep in mind that Damian's pokemon know dragon type moves and Blastoise even knows ice beam. Those moves are potentially catastrophic against Ash's remaining pokemon."

Everyone nodded at this knowing that Ash still had a major disadvantage to the typing, but there was clearly some hope that the raven haired trainer would pull this battle back his way!

 **At the battlefield (Ash POV):**

I look at Damian and notice he might be sticking with Blastoise to keep battling. At this I pull out a pokeball from my belt and bob it in my hand. As if knowing who I was about to choose, Damian pulled out a pokeball and recalled Blastoise back into his red and white sphere. Instinctively, I put the pokeball that was in my hand back in my belt and grabbed the other to notice that it was starting to shake as well. Yup, I am using this guy.

"Go Hydreigon!" I hear as I see the dark and dragon type pseudo legendary appear in front of me with a large roar that pierced through the entire stadium. I did not flinch as I heard the stands cheer for the battle to occur, but I showed the pokeball in front of me as I was beginning to throw it.

" _Hydreigon is back into the battlefield, who will Ash use this time to face it?"_

"Noivern, I choose you!" I exclaim as I then followed through my throw to make a flashing light appear in front of me. The sound wave dragon I had raised from an egg landed right in front of me with a powerful roar that made me smirk. I notice as the two dragons that are in front of each other growl at one another with determination in their eyes. I could see how Hydreigon had taken some damage from his battle with Goodra as there were some small nicks around his body, at the same time Noivern had some markings as well because of the ice type moves that Weavile had done to him. Despite this, I saw how Rob initiated the battle, so I went for the first attack with a fist in front of my face: "Noivern confuse it with supersonic!"

"Noi… VEEERRRRNNN!" I hear as the sound wave dragon makes his ears shoot a sound based move that made Hydreigon sink to the ground with pain. I then noticed how Hydreigon began to get back up and roar as soon as the attack cut out, which made me smirk knowing the after effects of that move.

"Hydreigon use brutal swing!" I saw how Hydreigon made his limbs glow with dark colors, but instead of striking Noivern, he hit the sand below him and began to go for the cacti. I watched with amusement as Hydreigon hurt himself in the thorned plants and Damian was looking at the dark and dragon type like he was crazy.

" _Noivern's supersonic completely confuses Hydreigon! Amazing trickery by Ash!"_

"Noivern, use boomburst!" I shout as I see my opportunity. Noivern makes a battle cry as his ears begin to glow white and then expelled a very loud sound wave move that his Hydreigon head on. The attack made an explosion surround the hydra before he got back up and shook his head. "So, I think he may have snapped out of it," I muttered to myself as I pump my fist. "Noivern, let's be careful!"

"Vern!" Noivern replied as I watched Damian put his fist out.

"Hydreigon, use dragon rush and go into the sky!"

"GGGOOONNN!" Hydreigon shouted as he made himself glow in a large blue glow and then leapt into the air.

I followed the figure of Hydreigon and look at my dragon, "Noivern, take flight and follow him with sky attack!" Noivern nods and flaps his wings as he then takes to the skies. I watch as Noivern flies to the opposite side of Hydreigon and then begins to make himself glow in gold celestial energy which made me clench my teeth in nerves. It was clear that Noivern could handle it, I believed in him.

" **Clash!"** I heard as I looked up to see the two pokemon collide head on to make a large explosion. As I see this, I notice that I have to take advantage of the fact that I am now in control of the smoke because this is something that Noivern can do. "Noivern use supersonic!" I heard a large cry of my dragon overpower even the sound of the stands as I then see the hydra begin to fall to the ground.

" _Hydreigon is falling! What can Damian do now to prevent getting hit more devastatingly!"_

"Straighten yourself!" Damian shouts, I hear a small amount of frustration in his voice as I then notice that Hydreigon had gotten himself back up and straight to be in position to strike again. "Now charge up a dragon pulse!"

"Dreigon…" Hydreigon muttered as I see him charge up the color shaped beam with his three heads.

I see that this is my opportunity since nobody knows from where Noivern will strike so I put my fist out, "Go in with sky attack!"

"VERN!" I hear Noivern shout as I then see a gold aura of power emerge from the smoke in the direction of Hydreigon.

"Hydreigon, let it go!" I hear Damian shout in frustration as Hydreigon begins to let go of the beam only for Noivern to dodge it at the last second and then smash himself into the back of Hydreigon thus sending the dark and dragon type to the ground. "Where did he go?" Damian asked in surprise as he looked up to then see Noivern flying back into the smoke that was beginning to clear. "Argh! Hydreigon use tri attack!" I see as Hydreigon begins to charge up his attack and then launched the three elemental beams into the smoke.

" _After using the smoke to his advantage, Noivern is now in the air, but the incoming tri attack from Hydreigon is bound to be powerful!"_

"Dodge it!" I shout as I put my hand out to the side. As soon as I say this, I watch as Noivern emerges from the smoke and begins to encircle around Hydreigon, who was levitating as well. Hydreigon then began to point all three heads in different directions while trying to his Noivern, I see as my dragon avoids the electric and fire beam, only for him to be hit by the ice beam, the one I was trying to avoid the most. "Noivern no!" I shout as I see Noivern fall to the ground with an ice covering. "Oh no! Noivern!" I shout noticing that the sound wave dragon was completely covered in ice, from ears toe. **(Anatomy of a Noivern)**

" _Uh oh, Noivern has been completely frozen over by the ice attack that comes with tri attack!"_

 **At the stands:**

"Ahhh!" Everyone flinched as they saw Noivern emerge completely coated in ice like a popsicle.

"Noivern is in big trouble, he does not have any way to burn off the ice," Brock said with gritted teeth as he took a closer look at the battlefield to hear Ash through the speaker system trying to call out to Noivern.

"This is bad, if Noivern does not get out of the ice, then this is it for him, if only there was a way to break him out," Shauna replied as she had a worried face.

"Sound waves," Serena muttered to herself. Looking at Noivern, it seemed possible, but it was very risky. "If anyone is to take risks, it is Ash," Serena told herself in an effort to keep herself calm.

"Come on Ash!" Bonnie exclaimed as she jumped out of her seat to shout out towards her friend.

Night looked at the battle with narrowed eyes, "This does not look like a good situation for Ash. I wonder if he can get out of it." Night then sighed as he looked up to the field and saw as Decidueye kept his ground while looking down. "Alright, this battle will end soon, so that means I have to get into position soon."

 **With Professor Sycamore:**

"This looks bad for Noivern, there certainly barely any way that Ash could come back from this," Professor Sycamore said to a Mairin that was looking sadly towards Ash.

Mairin hugged Chespie and whispered to herself the following words: "Come on Noivern, win this for Ash."

 **At the battlefield:**

"Noivern come on!"

"Pika Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted from Ash's side after having recovered from his last battle and feeling better. Ash took a glimpse of the scoreboard to see how he was doing, fair enough, it was very much a draw at this point:

 **Ash:** _Pikachu Goodra Greninja Sceptile_ Charizard **Noivern**

 **Damian:** _Gigalith Weavile Metagross Darmanitan_ Blastoise **Hydreigon**

"So, have you given up?" Damian asked with a very amused expression as he looked at the Kanto Native.

"You can forfeit if you want," Rob said as he looked at Ash with an amused expression as well. The crowd began to murmur as the raven haired trainer then shadowed his eyes in his cap.

"Give up?" Ash asked himself as he then looked up and put his hand out, "That is not what my team and I are about! We will never give up until the very last fight!" Ash then turned to the large piece of ice that contained his sound wave dragon and then cuffed his hands: "Noivern, come on! I know you can hear me!"

"Ugh, useless," Damian interjected as he then put his hand out: "Finish this battle by using dragon rush!"

"GON!" Hydreigon shouted as he began to make a blue glow that then began to rush towards the ice. "HYDRA!" The large brutal pokemon cried as he made a trail of sand shoot out behind him as he flew through the arena.

" _Hydreigon is coming in with a dragon rush! What can Ash do now?"_

A bright gleam from the sun above then pierced Ash's eye and made his pump both of his fists to both sides, "Noivern, if you can hear me, use boomburst and shatter that ice!" At first nothing happened, but then the ice began to crack and get less transparent. "Don't give up!" Hydreigon was just about to hit the ice when suddenly the entire side of the battlefield near Ash had a large explosion that made the raven haired trainer and his electric mouse look away. Seeing this, Ash knew exactly what had happened as when the smoke cleared, all that was seen was a dumbfounded Hydreigon looking in all directions. Looking up, Ash then saw what he wanted to see:

"Noi… VERN!" Noivern shouted as he then made his ears glow and shot a bright tornadic beam of sound waves that slammed into the top of Hydreigon's head, which then caused the hydra to be hit down towards the ground and kick up sand.

" _Noivern is out of the ice! After using the powerful sound waves, Ash managed to get the ice to shatter and thus escape the attack!"_

"What? No way!" Damian stated in shock as he looked at his Hydreigon on the ground. "Hydreigon get up now!"

"Dreigon…." Hydreigon struggled to get back up which made the blue haired trainer look shocked.

Ash chuckled a little as he threw his fist out in front of him, causing his keystone to gleam in the light. The raven haired trainer then threw his hands out in both directions and with a victorious pose said: "So Damian, how do you like Noivern now?" Damian gritted his teeth at this as Ash then craned his arm downwards to then put his palm facing towards the field and then formed a fist, which he threw to his side: "Use hurricane!"

"Noi…." Noivern shouted as he flapped his wings to then begin to spin in the air above Hydreigon. "VVVVVVEEEEERRRRRNNNNNN!" Noivern cried as the wind picked up in a tornadic fashion throughout the entire battlefield. The stands roared as Ash then adjusted his cap with his scarf shaking to the amount of breeze that was going through him. Hydreigon fell to the ground and used his head-like hands to try and stay anchored to the ground. Damian seemed to be completely speechless as the wind based move caused him to cover himself in an attempt to avoid getting carried away by the wind.

" _What a powerful attack! Will Hydreigon be able to withstand it?"_

"HYDRAAA!" Hydreigon shouted as he gave one last effort to hold himself still, but what ended up happening was fatal to the brutal pokemon. "Dreigon…" Hydreigon grunted as he lost his grip to the ground and began to get picked up along with all of the sand on the ground. Ash smirked as he saw this, because it meant that the three headed dragon type was seemingly getting weaker and weaker.

" _And it can't. Hydreigon has been sent flying into the raging winds!"_

The stands kept egging on the battle as they saw Hydreigon getting blown in circles that Noivern was overlooking, the sound wave dragon seemingly smiling towards his attack. "Come on Hydreigon!" Damian shouted with a desperate tone, something Ash guiltily found satisfying.

"Stop the attack," Ash commanded as he looked up towards the sound wave dragon. The wind instantly calmed down as everyone gasped to see the brutal pokemon begin to fall to the ground helplessly with smoke coming from his corrupted wings. Ash looked closely at Hydreigon and narrowed his eyes. "Damian, take this as payback from last time!" Ash then pumped both of his fists. " **ONVERN! CONTO BANO!"**

"Noi…." The large eared dragon cried as he made a gold aura of energy surround him. Noivern then dived down towards the three headed pokemon with a lot of power and speed, something that Ash could not have been more proud of. "VVVEERRRRRNN!" Noivern cried as a dark scene portrayed Noivern swiping past Hydreigon in slow motion while a gold trail followed the sound waved dragon.

"Hydreigon NO!" Damian panicked as he saw his pokemon crash into the ground and get back up to his knees, only to stagger and collapse again.

At the same time, Noivern landed in front of Ash, who was sporting a victorious pose with his fists at his sides and a smile on his face. "VVVEEEERRRNNN!" Noivern cried once again as he witnessed the crowd erupt to cheers and Ash pumped his fist behind him.

"H-Hydreigon is unable to battle, Noivern wins!" Rob declared while stuttering. His clothes were shaken up, and to make things worse, he was beginning to lose hope on his plan to defeat Ash by rigging the mechanics of the battle.

" _And it happened! Hydreigon has finally been defeated! This quarter final match is at its climax everyone!"_

 **At the stands:**

"YES Ash!" Serena shouted as she stood up from her seat.

"That was amazing!" Brock replied as he looked down at the field and looked at the others. "Noivern truly showed us why he was so eager to battle!"

"It was a victory that Noivern could not have done without the support of his teammates that is for sure," Shauna chuckled as she looked at the field. "Only that Blastoise to go and this will be it!"

"That Blastoise looks very powerful, if you ask me, I think that the mega evolution can still rival Charizard and Noivern," Clemont said with a very serious tone. "I still think Ash has to be careful if he wants to win this battle." Everyone turned to the lemon blonde inventor at that moment: "Blastoise can mega evolve, and if there is something that is dangerous is the ice beam and the type advantage that he has over Charizard."

"Clemont is right, Ash still needs to battle hard if he wants to win this battle," Calem said as he looked at Ash, who was seemingly talking to Noivern with a smile on his face. 'Ash, I don't want to make a strategy against Damian, please just win this battle for us so that we can have an amazing battle later on, the semi finals or the finals, it does not matter which round,' Calem thought as he watched Ash nod at Noivern and send the dragon back to the sand.

 **At the battlefield:**

"Noivern, let's give Blastoise a run for its money and win this battle right here and now!" Ash exclaimed as he pumped his fist.

"I wouldn't count on it," Damian retaliated as he threw the pokeball into the field: "Let's defeat these last two pokemon Blastoise!"

"TOISEEEEEE!" Blastoise shouted with an ear chilling cry as he emerged from the pokeball and stood in front of Ash with a very menacing look. The raven haired trainer narrowed his shining auburn eyes to then notice that the arena was egging on cheering towards his name. At this, the Kanto native looked around and noticed the many people seated on the stands which were cheering him on: At least three levels around the hexagon in an extremely large shape. Ash looked forward to see how the water type was eyeing the sound wave dragon and then noticed how the mega stone was glistening in the hand of the starter from the Kanto region.

" _It has come down to Blastoise against Noivern! Is this going to be the end of the road for Damian, or will he be able to pull a comeback and take down Ash's two remaining pokemon?"_

Ash heard the crowd seem to boo at the last option for the outcome which made him chuckle a little, "Alright then, Noivern, let's focus all of our power into this battle!" Noivern nodded and then made a battle cry that made Ash smirk and pump his fists in front of his face, "Noivern, let's start this off with sky attack!" Noivern flew into the air and then made himself glow a gold celestial aura before then charging Blastoise, who was standing into the ground with his feet inside the sand.

"Use rapid spin!" Damian ordered with his hand out. The water type retracted into his shell before then beginning to spin like a top to then shoot out towards the sound wave dragon. The gap closed between the two pokemon which then caused a very large shockwave in the middle of the stadium. The two pokemon then retracted with Noivern going into the air and staying there while Blastoise ended up in front of the blue haired trainer with a large thud. "He won't get away, use dragon pulse!"

"Counter it with boomburst!"

"TOISE!"

"VERN!"

" **ROAR!"** The dragon pulse shot out in the shape of a dragon while the tornadic transparent beam shot out the ears of the black flying type. The two attacks then collided and interacted with each other before they then caused an explosion in the middle of the field. Both pokemon made separate grunts as they fell in front of their trainers.

" _What a collision between boomburst and dragon pulse!"_

"Attack continuously," Damian shouted as he pointed forward. "Attack him with rapid spin again!" Blastoise shot out towards Noivern, who was still getting up, and began spinning like a top at a velocity that even Ash could not believe.

"Noivern you have to dodge it!" Ash shouted as he looked at the air. "Get up and get airborne!" Noivern struggled to get up, but then did so as he kicked off from the sand and flapped his wings as the water dragon came under him. "Now attack him with supersonic!"

"Noi… VEEEERRRNN!" Noivern shouted as he pulled back his wings to then shoot a barrage of sound waves that caused the large turtle to stop and cover his ears.

Damian gritted his teeth as he saw this and then looked back up towards Noivern and though of an idea that might just work: "Blastoise use dragon pulse straight up!" Blastoise charged up his attack with the two canons and then fired off the colorful beam towards Noivern that went through the sound waves. Ash saw this and ordered for a dodge, something that the blue haired trainer saw coming. Noivern easily maneuvered around the colorful beam to then get surprised at the next move that Damina made: "Use ice beam!"

"Noivern get out of there!" Ash shouted, but it was too late as Noivern was struck right in the wing which made the black dragon begin to fall to the ground. "Noivern no!" Ash shouted with a very surprised tone as he then saw his dragon fall in front of him while picking up the sand. "Noivern!"

" _Noivern is hit with a super effective ice beam! Is this it for the dragon type?"_

"Pika!" Pikachu gasped with a shocked expression as he watched Noivern struggle to get back up.

The blue haired trainer then threw a fist in front of himself as he then commanded his next attack, "Water pulse!"

"Blas…. TOISE!"

"Noi?" Noivern asked in awe as he watch the blue spherical attack coming closer and closer. Noivern then sank closer to the ground in pain as the attack the collided with him head on which caused an explosion around him. The sand picked up and within a second, the smoke and sand particles were gone which left the sound wave dragon on the ground unconscious. "Vern…"

"Pika!"

"Noivern no!" Ash shouted in panic as he saw this.

"Noivern is unable to battle, Blastoise wins!" Rob declared with a smirk as he kept his view on the fist pumping Damian who was behind a Blastoise that was looking ahead with a very powerful look.

" _Noivern is now out of the picture! Ash is only down to Charizard now!"_

The crowd made silent murmurs, but Ash slowly got onto the field and checked on his sound wave dragon, "Noivern are you alright?" Ash asked as he got closer to Noivern.

"Noivern," Noivern said as he looked back up towards Ash with a smile. "Noi Noivern," Noivern said as he then nodded. Ash knew what this meant, Noivern wanted him to win this battle for his pokemon and friends.

Ash smiled and patted the head of the sound wave dragon, "You are right, I am so proud of you." Ash then pulled out a pokeball and recalled Noivern back to his pokeball. "Take a good rest, you are going to need it for our next battle." Ash then smiled as he got back up to his feet and walked back to where Pikachu was sitting. The Kanto native did not even waste time as he grabbed the last pokeball from his belt and smirked. "This is it," Ash said as he put Charizard's pokeball right in front of him to then throw it while following through into the field, "Charizard I choose you!"

The pokeball burst open and into a light that then materialized into the fire and flying type that had a pendant collar with a blue stone on it. "Gruaw!" Charizard shouted as he landed in the sand and roared into the sky while igniting himself on fire. Ash noticed the flame on Charizard's tail had grown to be large, it was definitely something that I would call powerful. "Gruaw," Charizard said as he looked back at Ash.

" _So now it is Charizard against Blastoise! A classic all time matchup of fire against water back in the Kanto region for many battles! I am sure this one will be extra special!"_

"Alright Charizard, let's show Damian just how strong you have become when you went on a journey with me," Ash said as he smiled. Charizard smirked himself as he looked over at Damian and Blastoise to then narrow his eyes before roaring again. Ash took a look at the scoreboard to see how things were going, and sure enough, it was a very close battle at this point:

 **Ash:** _Noivern Pikachu Goodra Greninja Sceptile_ **Charizard**

 **Damian:** _Hydreigon Gigalith Weavile Metagross Darmanitan_ **Blastoise**

"Charizard, use dragon claw!" Ash shouted as he looked forward and swiped his open hand in front of himself. Charizard made a battle cry as he leaped into the air and made his claws glow green and scaly before then flying straight for the water type who was in front of him, a trail of sand kicking up as he traveled through the battlefield.

Damian gritted his teeth as he then pointed forward, "Not so fast, water pulse!" Blastoise made the ball form with his two cannons and then in slow motion the two pokemon closed the gap between each other as Blastoise fired the sphere at the green claws that Charizard had in his hands. The attacks collided and consumed everything in smoke which then caused the two Kanto starters to land in front of their trainers and make a battle cry as they stood at a staredown. "Now look upwards and use ice beam!"

"Dodge it!" Ash exclaimed as he punched the air in front of him. Charizard flew around the freezing bolt of ice and then dove towards the ground to be flying towards Blastoise. "Use thunderpunch!" Ash then shouted as he spread his arms out to his sides while the sun gleamed in his eyes.

"Gruaw!" Charizard shouted as he made his fist begin to glow with yellow sparking electricity that was arcing in the air around the limb.

Damian saw the super effective attack and then pumped his fist forward, "Rapid spin! Don't let him get too close to you!" The water turtle retracted once again into his shell to then begin to spin in the direction of the fire type, who was sporting the strong super effective electric type attack. As soon as the two attacks collided, Charizard and Blastoise strained for a while making battle cries, until they both then fell back in front of their trainers.

" _This battle is truly amazing! I am at the edge of my seat!"_

 **At the stands:**

"This is it," Tierno said as he looked at the Blastoise and then shifted his eyes towards the Charizard. "I don't know if Trevor and I would even be able to make such a powerful battle ourselves if we battled with our starters."

"I agree," Trevor said. "Ash's Charizard has proved to being extremely powerful." The orange haired trainer then narrowed his eyes. "The fact that Ash's Charizard is primarily a close ranged attacker will make things seemingly more difficult for him since Damian can attack at a distance."

Brock noticed this ideology and then came up with his own theory, "But what if Ash is able to come up with a strategy of attacking at close range? Maybe that will be the best way for him to win the entire battle."

"Go ASH!" Bonnie shouted as she stood up from her seat.

Dedenne, who was on the lemon girl's head also made a cry himself as Squishy, who was now looking from Bonnie's opening, looked at the battle with a very amused look on his face.

"Ash, you can do this," Serena muttered to herself as she looked at the field to then look around and hear the loud cheers from the spectators of the hexagonal stadium.

"The climax is here," Night said as he narrowed his eyes to see the staredown between Ash and Damian. "Jolteon," The blue attired trainer said as he looked at his partner. "We need to get closer to the battlefield, let's go to one of the dugouts and wait."

"Jol!" Jolteon replied as the two began to get on the move, the trainer sharing a glance with the hooded owl that was overlooking the battle from the roof.

 **At the battlefield:**

Damian looked at Ash and smirked, "You know, maybe I need to show you just how powerful I can be." Ash cocked his eyebrow and Charizard also gave a confused growl as they both then went wide eyed in realization of what Damian was doing as he reached for his sun glasses. "Blastoise!" Damian shouted as he touched the key stone and a bright flashing light began to occur. The prongs on Blastoise's mega stone also began to appear as the water type got enclosed in a bright light. "Mega evolve!"

"TTOOOIIIISSSEEE!" Blastoise shouted as his body began to grow larger and larger, the canons on the top of his shell merged into one big one and his arms developed their own two canons. "BLAST!" Blastoise finished as he spread his arms out to then flex them to the power he had gained, this caused the flashing light to be replaced with the normal colors of the species, "BLASTOISE!" Blastoise called out as the DNA symbol for mega evolution appeared in front of him to then disappear into thin air.

" _Damian has mega evolved his Blastoise! This is bound to get interesting very fast!"_

 **Nightcore- Any Other Way**

Ash saw this and looked up with a smirk as he then had the glove with the keystone come up to be next to his face. "We will respond with our true power," Ash said as he narrowed his eyes and touched the keystone. "Keystone, listen to my heart," The raven haired trainer chanted as he felt the prongs from the stone shoot out towards Charizard's pendant, who also had his prongs coming out. "Beyond evolution! Mega evolve!"

"Grrrrrrruuuuuuuuuuuuaaaaaawwwww!" Charizard roared as he began to glow just like Blastoise. Claws growing, shoulders becoming pointed, Charizard roared as the side of his face developped fire that raged in a way that resembled the scarf that Ash had on. "ROAR!" Charizard roared as the glow disappeared to reveal his new black and blue body that then also portrayed the mega evolution DNA symbol in front of him before it disappeared into thin air.

" _There is that blue mega Charizard! How will this battle play out? This is the climax everyone!"_

 **Drums kick in** _I am wide awake, and I'm standing tall!_

"Use dragon claw!" Ash shouted as he shook his open hand in front of him into a fist. Charizard did not even back down as he jumped into the air and made his claws glow green before flying in the direction of the Blastoise, who spread his legs apart ready to battle.

 _Up against the world, up against the wall!_

Damian put his fist into the air and shouted his next attack as well, "Use dragon pulse!" Blastoise did not even waste time as he put his arms forward and made all three of his canons begin to glow. The top one made a blue beam, while the right one of the hand made a red beam which in contrast to the one opposite of that was purple. The three beams merged and formed the trademark colorful dragon shape that threatened to consume Charizard.

"GRUAW!" The fire type roared as he went into the mouth of the dragon. _Between the love and hate, they can hardly wait, to watch the hero fall…_ Charizard begins to fall in pain from the attack as Ash gritted his teeth.

Ash narrowed his eyes as he pumped his fist in front of himself, " _you can give me hell, you can give me death, break before I bend I will have revenge_. Charizard keep going and don't stop with flare blitz!"

 _Fire through my veins, I will fan the flames, until my dying breath…_ Charizard ignited himself in a blue aura of fire and began to charge towards Blastoise. **Guitar kicks in** ' _Cause I will never go down, any other way!_

"Blastoise, rapid spin!" Damian retaliated as he saw the attack.

"Toise!" Blastoise shouted as he began to spin while shooting out towards the flying fire dragon that was burning a blaze. "BLASTOISE!" Blastoise shouted as he then caught himself in a stalemate with Charizard that sent a shockwave rippling through the entire arena. Cheers roared while Ash and Damian recoiled from the clash of the attack which ended in the raven haired trainer's scarf shaking madly.

 _I will never go down, any other way!_

The attack then ended as Blastoise retracted back to be in front of Damian as a mirage image of Ash pumped his fist seeing an opening, "Use thunder punch!" Charizard made his glowing electric fist and then flew to surprise the blue haired trainer and the water type by slamming the fist into the abdomen of the turtle in an uppercut motion, which caused the Blastoise to be propelled into the air. Ash then saw this as an opportunity to keep attacking, "Now go in with your dragon claw!"

"Gruaw!" Charizard shouted as he spread his arms out and then formed a pair of large green claws, boosted by the tough claws ability.

"Don't let him Blastoise, use ice beam and aim for the wings!" Blastoise got to work and instantly shot the beam of ice through his largest canon, which then followed a zigzag around the ground and then formed ice crystals on Charizard's wings just as he lept into the air. The fire type tried to fly, but then fell on his abdomen towards the sand and grunted in pain as he tried to get back up.

"Fly and melt that ice with flare blitz!" Ash shouted as the sun sparkled his eyes and then showed how how Charizard began to glow on fire to then portray that the ice on his wings began to melt as if it was nothing. _Gasoline pumping through my veins! Dancing on top of the flames!_ "Now use the fire to climb and strike Blastoise!"

"I won't let you," Damian exclaimed as he then put a fist into the air, "Spin and shoot water pulses around!"

"TOISE!" Blastoise shouted as he began to spin like a top and then formed water spheres in his cannons that shot in all directions which made Ash grit his teeth.

Ash put a hand in front of himself as he gritted his teeth, "Charizard dodge all of those attacks!" The fire type nodded at the raven haired trainer and then began to fly around the incoming water type attacks. Suddenly, one of the attacks struck Charizard and the fire type fell to the ground to be in front of a prepared Blastoise that was about to slam another dragon pulse into Charizard. _I will never go down any other way! Any other wayyyy…_ "Kick up the sand with your wings!" Ash shouted instinctively.

"Gruaw!" Charizard flapped his wings to then have the sand pick up from the battlefield and prevent the dragon type attack from coming any closer.

Damian then got another idea as he narrowed his eyes and smirked as he saw what he wanted, "Blastoise use rapid spin on the cacti and make the needles fly in Charizard's direction!" Blastoise looked to his sides and saw what he wanted to see which caused him to retract to his shell and rush the green plants to then spin wildly causing the cacti to be destroyed, but then the thorns began to shoot out towards the fire lizard that was in front of Ash. _Feel the poison now, slipping through my skin, I'm not giving up, but I'm giving in._

"Protect yourself with dragon claw!" the Kanto native exclaimed as he crossed a fist in front of his face. The barrage of needles interacted with the green scaly pair of claws and then exploded on impact which caused Charizard to look up from the smoke with a thrilled look. _To my darker side, to my every sin…_ "Now use thunder punch!" The raven haired trainer shouted as he put a hand out.

 _So I can fight again, you can give me hell, you can give me death, break before I bend I will have revenge._

"ROAR!" Charizard shouted as he flew through the sand with a trail of particles kicking up behind him.

 _Fire through my veins, I will fan the flames, until my dying breath…_ **Drums beat once again before the chorus starts again**

"Withdraw into your shell!" Damian shouted. Blastoise did as he was ordered and went into his shell as Charizard came up over him with a shadow covering Blastoise. Damian smirked as he saw the fire type slam the arcing knuckle into the shell of the water type to see that nothing was happening which caused the fire lizard and the Kanto native to flinch a little, but not give up.

"Keep going Charizard!" ' _Cause I will never go down, any other way!_ Charizard slammed his charged up fist into Blastoise, nothing was happening.

"Gruaw!" top of the shell.

"Roar!" Under the shell causing Blastoise to be airborne

"Gruaw!" Charizard made his other fist also glow in electricity and then slammed them both down in a 'V' shape towards the brown shield that was encasing the water type starter from Kanto. _I will never go down, any other way!_ "GGRRRRRRAAAWWWWW!" Charizard roared once more as he then upper cut the shell to then down cut the shell towards the sand to see Damian in a shocked expression as Blastoise slowly came out of his shell with a dazed expression. _Gasoline pumping through my veins, dancing on top of the flames! I will never go down any other way! Any other way!_

 _Any other way!_

"Blastoise use dragon pulse once again!" This command caught Ash and Charizard by surprise as the two did not have time to react to the incoming dragon shaped beam.

" **ROAR!"** The dragon pulse roared as the explosion consumed Ash's side of the battlefield. The raven haired trainer shielded himself with his hand as his scarf shaked. When the smoke cleared, Charizard was on his knees, clearly hurt from the attack. "Urgh... " Ash muttered as he then looked back up and saw Charizard slowly get back up. "Charizard, we can do this, I know you can!" Charizard looked at Ash and nodded at the advice as he then looked at the Blastoise and narrowed his eyes, no movement at all from both trainers and both pokemon.

' _Cause I will never go down any other way…._

 _I will never go down any other way…_

Charizard twitches his hand and to this, Blastoise seemingly flinches in surprise. **Drums kick in again**. "Use flare blitz!" ' _Cause I will never go down any other way!_ Charizard roared as he then made himself glow in blue fire to charge the water type that was opposite of him. Damian and Blastoise flinched at this as they saw the fire type slam the strong inferno on them. Ash then put a hand into the sky and called out his next attack, "Now take Blastoise into the air!"

"Toise?" Blastoise asked as he felt a pair of hands latch onto him from both sides. _I will never go down any other way!_

"Gruaw!" Charizard roared as he went into the beaming sky that was blue while the sun caused a reflection on the sky, all with the Kanto water starter that was on his arms as he went up into the air. _Gasoline pumping through my veins, dancing on top of the flames!_

Damian looked at this and gasped as the color left his face to then be replaced with a very aggressive way of gritting one's teeth, "Rapid spin!" In the air, Blastoise opened his eyes and then retracted into his shell. The momentum then caused the water type to begin spinning in the arms of the infernal dragon which ultimately caused him to let the water type turtle go as he propelled himself into the sky with the rotational energy from the rapid spin.

 _I will never go down any other way!_

Charizard fell under Blastoise, and Ash gritted his teeth as he saw this, but the raven haired trainer had the brightest gleam on his eyes as he smirked at the blue haired trainer's little scheme, "Damian, you played yourself big time!" Ash then looked up and put a fist into the air, " **LIZARDON! Doragon Croaw!"**

"Gruaw!" Charizard roared as he then made his claws shake with the stress of his own power to then form the large green three pronged claws that were then put in front of the fire lizard's face before he then shot upwards and collided with the spinning turtle. The stands were cheering at this as Damian gasped in shock as Blastoise slowly stopped spinning, enough for the fire lizard to once again grab ahold of him.

Ash looked up and smirked at this as he then crossed a hand in front of his face, "This is it Damian, I- no, _we_ are through with you!" Ash then pumped a fist in front of his face and shouted, "Dive down Charizard!" From the sky, Ash saw as the infernal dragon began to fall towards the ground with his wings retracted. Seeing the perfect altitude for his plan, Ash made his calculations and smirked as he inverted his cap while raising a hand into the air: "CHARIZARD USE SEISMIC TOSS!"

"GGGGGRRRRRRAAAAAWWWWWW!" Charizard roared as he swung his body around and then launched the water type turtle hurtling towards the ground with a trail of smoke following as he fell faster and faster towards the ground.

 _Any other way!_ **Music cuts out**

" **BOOM!"** Blastoise hit the ground hard as instantly an explosion kicked up and consumed the middle of the desert field. The stands stayed silent as the smoke and sand cleared to then see that Blastoise was on the ground unconscious with a glow around him as he shifted back into his original form.

"B-Blastoise is unable to battle," Rob spat out with a very disgusted tone as the stands began to erupt into cheers louder than anyone has even heard before. "This means that the win goes to Ash from Lumiose City!"

Charizard then landed in front of Ash with a little bit of sand kicking up from his feet. "GGRRRRRUUUUAAAAWWWWW!" Charizard roared as he clenched his fist and stood proud in front of the raven haired trainer, who was smirking as well with his hands at his side.

" _And Ash has found it! This aspiring trainer has just found himself a spot on the semi finals!"_

"Good job Charizard," Ash praised as he stepped into the sandy field to pet his fire type that then turned back into his original form. Charizard then signaled for Ash to look up at the scoreboard, and seeing that his face was next to Calem's and Seth's, Ash smiled, "Charizard, we are going to the semi finals!" Charizard nodded at this as the raven haired trainer hugged the fire type. "You were great buddy," Ash said as he felt a new pair of feet land on his shoulder.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted as he licked the raven haired trainer's face.

"Pikachu," Ash said as he also petted the electric mouse behind the ears. "You were amazing too buddy, actually, everyone was, this victory was truly won by team work."

 **At the stands:**

"Ash yes!" Serena exclaimed as she pumped her fist in front of herself while looking towards the arena and down towards her crush. He was embracing his pokemon and she sure did find that amazing as she felt her cheeks color themselves bright red.

Everyone clapped in the stands as Shauna, Tierno and Trevor gave congratulation remarks towards Ash. Calem looked at Ash and smirked as he looked at Charizard and Pikachu on his best friend, he wanted to battle him so badly, "This is truly a battle that Ash deserved to win, and he found it, good job," Calem said as he clapped amusingly.

"This was truly a battle won by passion," Clemont said as he adjusted his glasses. "The way Ash battled is something that can get an admiration from just about anyone!"

"Don't forget the girls," Bonnie agreed as she elbowed Serena playfully, this caused the honey blonde to tense up as the lemon haired girl then jumped out of her seat. "THEY WON! ASH WON!"

"I can't believe it, already in the semi finals," Brock said as he then chuckled. "I think his dad really rubbed off on him," Brock muttered to himself so that nobody could hear.

 **With Professor Sycamore:**

"Marvelous!" The professor chimed as he clapped his hands in an amusing manner. "What a way to finish this battle, only Ash can pull something that amazing off!"

"Yea!" Mairin said with shining eyes as she hugged Chespie harder. "He was so cool! He won that battle with that extremely powerful and amazing Charizard!" The red head then looked at Professor Sycamore. "Was that mega evolution? The way that Charizard and Blastoise transformed like that?" Mairin asked in a very amused tone and shining eyes that made the Professor sweat drop a little.

"Yes, it was, and it truly is a marvelous thing if you ask me, maybe a new research topic for me," Professor Sycamore said with a very amused voice as well.

"Wow!" Mairin squealed in excitement. "Not only was he super cool, but he also stood up that bully and beat him! He is so awesome!"

"Ches Chespin!" Chespie replied with a very amused tone as well.

"Haha, the boy is interesting, maybe you could meet him some day," Professor Sycamore replied as he looked at Mairin. 'Maybe Ash is the person that I was looking for, the person that could serve as her guardian.'

 **At the battlefield:**

The entire stadium kept roaring with cheers as Ash kept the embrace up with Pikachu and Charizard, obviously he could have never been more proud of them. At the same time, Damian recalled Blastoise back into his pokeball as he then shadowed his eyes, "I-I actually lost to Ash," Damian muttered while his fists shook.

"Damian," Rob said as the two met back up in the middle of the field.

Ash saw this and also made his way towards the other, "Look Damian," Ash began with Charizard and Pikachu on his shoulder. The other two guys had their attention drawn to the raven haired trainer who rubbed underneath his nose, all three teenagers were the same size… They were not imbalanced, but equal at that moment, "I know we never got the right start into our relationship, but, in the future, let's have a battle like that one."

Damian flinched at this and sighed, "Look Ash, I am sorry for all of this trouble I have caused you and your pokemon." Damian then reached towards Ash's hand. "Sure, when we meet again let's have another battle, but when that happens, expect a stronger and more civilized person."

Ash smirked as he saw this and pumped the fist of the hand he was not using to shake Damian's hand with, "It's a deal then!"

" _There it is! The large virtue of battling settles many disputes, and sure enough, this one has just ended!"_

The crowd cheered harder as a new voice appeared behind Ash, "Not so fast," Turning around, everyone was shocked to see Night and Jolteon standing there with his arms crossed.

"Night!" Ash shouted in a very surprised tone as he looked at the boy sporting black and blue. "What are you doing here?"

" _Wait, it seems that someone has just appeared out of nowhere!"_

"Wait, you are that guy that-"

The boy with the Jolteon took a deep breath, "I am afraid I am that guy that has seen your little fireside chats at night." Night then looked at the two, "So, was the plan seriously to attack other people's pokemon so that they could not battle?"

Damian and Rob both looked down with regretful expressions at this and slowly nodded, "Night, wait, they regret it," Ash said as he looked at the two and then back towards the other teenager. The crowd went silent to see what was going on. "There has to be another way."

"Pika!"

"Gruaw!"

"Oh goodness me Ash, I prefer to be helping injured pokemon and not play the police game, I am just here to tell them that they should not hurt pokemon, although it makes my job a lot more exciting, pokemon should not be the ones going through intentional pain," Night explained as he then turned towards Ash. "Your Pikachu and Goodra could have gotten seriously injured if it was not for Greninja and Noivern," Night said as he then shrugged his shoulders. "Look, the fact is that the referee was allowing illegal moves to go through, and I can't just sit around at that, the other battle with Hunter against Nero also had the same outcome because of him," Night signaled towards Rob who was standing with a regretful position next to Damian, "Dude, you need to be more considerate or else bad things may happen."

"I-I know," Rob said as he clenched his fists. "I just wanted to go along with the plan, but now I realize I was all wrong in how to do this," Rob said as he sighed. "Look, I surrender to you, just keep Damian out of this because I was the idiot that allowed him to do it."

Night nodded at this as he looked up for a black figure to come down from the sky and land behind Rob and Damian. Ash, Pikachu, and Charizard grew wide eyed as they saw Decidueye behind the other two. "Dueye," Decidueye nodded as he got the attention of the other two trainers.

"Let's go," Night said as he began to walk with Rob and Jolteon out of the field and towards the dugout. Inside the tunnel, Night then realized something was off. "Wait, have any of you guys seen Decidueye?"

"Pika?"

"Gruaw?"

"Ummm…" Ash said with a sweatdrop as he looked at the hooded owl holding the vines closed with his hands while lying in the sand… Completely motionless.

" _Is that pokemon in need of medical assistance? Oh no wait, we have apparently been informed that this certain pokemon tends to act that way."_

At this, the stands burst into laughter, something that Ash could not prevent himself from doing as he saw Night running back into the field with a frustrated expression.

 **A/N: Well what a running gag! That is one shy Decidueye! Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this battle and I will begin next chapter with what should have been the ending of this chapter! Anyways, I am ready for the top 4, but wait, one more quarter final match with Ashura (Satoshi) in it and then the matchups for those battles.**

 **Oh man, we are getting closer to the climax of the entire league, and I don't know who will be at the top (Well, I do), but I hope you guys accept my decision on how I write this xD!**

 **Oh yea, next chapter will also focus on Ash meeting someone that is going to play a large role with him later on! This is going to be an interesting thing to see, so be thrilled!**

 **I do want to apologize, many of you guys wanted me to kill Damian off (for some apparent reason), but I kind of need a powerful rival for Ash, probably for the future, who knows… Anyways, I didn't choose to kill him off, sorry about that. I hope a battle was enough though!**

 **Lastly, I want to ask you something, how did you like my attempt at making a battle a three parter instead of two? I think I will make Ash's next battle a two parter, but I just wanted to know for the future when I write more battles, specially the six on six ones.**

 **Don't forget to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **This is also going to be my last time responding to reviews this way, as I am going to start responding to them through PM since it would be nicer for the format of the chapters!**

* * *

 **Responding to reviews:**

 **Ninjafang1331: Glad you enjoyed dude!**

 **Guest 1: Sorry that didn't happen xD!**

 **Amourshipper35: Your wish has been granted.**

 **TFlameNeedsAMega: Well, I update whenever I feel like I can xD! Anyways, thanks for reviewing!**

 **Leafeon12: Thanks for reviewing, glad you like it!**

 **Thor94: Yo chill man xD! Glad you probably liked the ending of the chapter!**

 **Guest 2: FTW= For the win! Anyways, glad you enjoyed and thanks for reviewing!**


	46. Chapter 46

**At the stands:**

Ash just watched with wide eyes as he watched a large explosion surround the field in front of him. The raven haired trainer's eyes then shifted to his right to see the the cloaked man's Aegislash, who used night daze as the last attack land in front of him with the smoke beginning to clear in the rocky field. Ash narrowed his eyes as he looked through the smoke, and instantly, he knew that the battle was over when the trainer opposing the man, who was using an Alakazam who Ash noted was in his mega evolved form. "It's over," Ash mouthed as he looked beyond the field to see the referee raise his hand as the Alakazam shifted back into his regular form.

"Alakazam is unable to battle," The voice of the referee rang through the microphone system throughout the stadium and instinctively the entire stadium burst into cheers. "This means that Satoshi is the winner!"

" _And it is over! Satoshi has also advanced into the semifinals along with Calem, Seth, and Ash, who will be having their battles tomorrow!"_

"Wow, this battle ended quickly, it has not even been half an hour since Ash's battle ended," Tierno remarked while Ash looked at the scoreboard with a shocked expression to see the man called Satoshi's face be displayed as the winner for a couple of seconds to then have his face be put with Calem's, Seth's, and his. Ash watched as "Satoshi" recalled his pokemon, which Ash knew was a Zoroark, back into his pokeball to then begin to walk out of the battlefield, which had been a rock field as well.

Ash looked to his right to then see that Serena looked at the field with a very worried expression, he noticed the fear that was being reflected in the shining blue eyes that the honey blonde had. Ash leaned towards the girl a little, but not too much and whispered, "Everything alright?"

"Huh?" Serena asked as she looked back at Ash. She had to admit that the sun beaming down on the Kanto native's skin made him look vibrant and intimidating, but not in a bad way, just made him look a little stronger than he really was. "Oh," The young performer replied with a bright smile and then looked back at the battlefield, "I was just thinking about something, it's nothing."

"Ok," Ash said as he sighed and looked back at the scoreboard to then see that the crowd was cheering about something else as well.

"Guys! The semifinal matchups are about to displayed!" Trevor happily chanted as he looked at the faces of the four trainers. Ash looked at the scoreboard, where it said "Top 4" on it and then looked around to see Brock smirking.

"This looks like a very tough semi final bracket, a tough trainer that has not had a single pokemon be defeated, a trainer with a mega Swampert, another trainer with a Mega Gallade, and lastly, a trainer that has been working with pure teamwork and passion," Brock implied as he looked around. "I definitely see this as being intense as hell!"

"I am so excited to see who Calem and Ash are going to be going up against!" Shauna remarked as she looked at the field and looked at Calem. "Calem, you make sure that you give it your all, right!"

"Yea!" Calem said as he then turned to Ash and saw the raven haired trainer, "And we are getting closer to a potential rematch Ash, so if it does happen, no holding back!"

"I would not have it any other way Calem," Ash said as he smirked at the jet black haired trainer. "You bet that this time, things will be a lot different!" This caused Calem to smile and look back at the scoreboard with a "yea right" look on his face.

" _The final matchups for these two battles has been decided, and the order has been too!"_

"Alright! Here we go!" Bonnie exclaimed as she edged closer to the edge of her seat to look at the scoreboard that began to shuffle the faces around. It was clear that the matches would be back to back, but the fact was that the pairings of who would go against each other was what many were worried about, mostly because many were intimidated by the Satoshi man, but that did not matter as this was all a fun tournament for the title of champion.

"Pikapi!" Ash heard from his shoulder which then brought his attention back to the scoreboard to see what the electric mouse had been referring to.

The names had finally stopped and Ash could not have been happier with who he was going up against right after the first battle of the semifinals. Looking back at the jet black haired trainer, the two shared a friendly staredown before they then nodded at each other with a promise that neither of them would hold back during their battle.

" _And it has been decided! Satoshi against Seth will be the first battle, which will then be followed by another interesting matchup: Ash against Calem!"_

The crowd erupted into cheers as the Kanto native had a million thoughts in his head about what the battle was going to be like and what should be his strategy. He could hardly wait until the next day as he then had his attention going around the stadium to see the many rows of stands that had people occupying every single seat. "This… This has to be probably the battle I was desiring since the entire conference started," Ash muttered to himself. "And it is finally going to happen."

 **A/N: Here we go! The rematch that was promised since all the way back in chapter 15 is going to start next chapter! I can't wait for it to happen and I wonder if Seth will even be able to shock Ashura during their battle!**

 **Oh the challenges of being a writer, you have to think hard about how you will have things playing out so that the end result is the one that you want. Anyways, I am going to be having fun with the next few chapters, and definitely this one as it is a lot of Amourshipping that may be involved this chapter. It has been a while since I wrote a proper chapter that involved Amourshipping because it has been mostly battles since then!**

 **Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter as it will be very interesting, I will tell you that!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 46- A new friend! A strong bond will solve conflicts!

 **With Professor Sycamore:**

Professor Sycamore has been walking all throughout the trainer's village looking for a person that was walking around on her own, unsupervised, "Where did Mairin go?" Professor Sycamore asked himself as he walked out of the Pokemon center with a confused expression. "I had to make an important call, and poof, just like that she has vanished."

Professor Sycamore then felt a tap on his shoulder, turning around, he found nothing less than the Champion herself, Diantha, "Hello there Professor, mind if we have a little chat?"

"Not at all," Professor Sycamore replied as he noticed some people beginning to look their ways at the sight of the champion. This caused the Kalos moviestar to walk with the Professor to a place that lacked people just outside the main walkway. When the two found a bench to sit down in, Professor Sycamore cocked and eyebrow, "What is it that you needed to talk to me about?"

"Well the fact is that tonight the Elite Four, Night, and I will meet to have a conversation about the recent events that have been going on with Team Flare," Diantha then took a deep breath as she looked around and made sure that no one was around to hear anything. "Look, the fact is that we need you to tell us about your research in Mega Evolution energy so that we can prepare for the worst."

"I would love to go, but I have Mairin to look after, and the last thing I need is for her to be involved in all of this," Professor Sycamore said with a very serious tone. Diantah sighed as the man in a lab coat then put a hand to his chin, "Although, maybe if I can find someone to look after her and Chespie for the night, then I can attend."

"Thank you Professor," Diantha said as she stood up from the bench. "And don't worry about the person to take care of Mairin, I am pretty sure you will find the right person to do that without a problem."

"Alright, thanks Diantha," Professor Sycamore said as he he also stood up from the bench and the two split ways in order to go for their respective tasks, the regional professor obviously hoping that he can find the girl he is under guardianship of.

 **With Ash and the others:**

After saying goodbye to Calem, Shauna, Tierno and Trevor, Ash and the others ended up being in front of the hotel. "It is almost time to go back into our rooms," Clemont said as he looked at the clock and noticed that it was almost seven o'clock. Noticing this, Ash looked towards the sky and then towards the horizon to then see that the sun was beginning to set and the different bright colors of the horizon from orange to bright red.

Everyone's attention then shifted to the lemon haired girl that was in front of the door who then looked at Clemont and said, "Big brother, mind if I sleep with you and Brock for tonight? There is an idea for a pokepuff maker that I want Dedenne and Squishy to try!"

"I don't see why not," Clemont said as he then began to walk into the hotel lobby with Brock and Bonnie following behind him. "We are going to go ahead and go get some shut eye as tomorrow is a big day."

"Good night guys!" Brock and Bonnie exclaimed as they went into the hotel leaving the honey blonde and the raven haired trainer outside of the hotel by themselves. Looking around, the number of people walking around had diminished, but there was still some movement.

"Ash, are you also going to go take some rest right now?" Ash turned to see the honey blonde haired girl talking to him. The sparkle in her eyes and the way that her honey blonde hair moved seemed to captivate the Kanto native for a second, but he then looked back towards the stadium and sighed.

"You know, I kind of want to have some time to myself right now, I will go on ahead and join you guys later," Ash replied as he put his hands behind his back.

"Alright," The young performer replied as she walked into the hotel. "But remember to go to sleep soon." Serena then gave a shy chuckle, "Of course, you are just the most energetic person ever." Ash laughed at that last part as Pikachu also giggled at the expression. "Good night Ash, have a good one Pikachu," The honey blonde said as she walked slowly into the lobby.

"Have nice dreams tonight Serena," Ash whispered as he then turned to Pikachu, "Alright buddy, let's get a little bit of training going with Greninja, we need to make sure that we are out our prime tomorrow, specially with Calem being one of our most anticipated rivals of the tournament."

"Pika pikachu!" Pikachu replied as he pumped his fist.

"Alright Pikachu, first let's find a place to train and then we can..." Ash trailed off as something caught his eye. It was the familiar rival that he used to have bad blood with, in fact, he was walking back downhill from the top with his hands in his pockets and slowly walking. Seeing this, Ash called out to him, "Damian!"

"Huh?" Damian looked around until he saw Ash looking down on his. "Oh, hey," Damian replied with a seemingly genuine voice.

"Are you already leaving?" Ash asked curiously as he looked at the blue haired trainer.

"Yes, in fact I am," Damian replied as he looked back towards the exit of the trainer's village which lead down to the skyline of the heart of Kalos that was shining through the shaded sky, the lights of the city were turned on and it was clear that Prism Tower was also having his lights turned on. Damina though, he looked at the ground and shadowed his eyes, "Through our battle, I was able to learn the power of what a strong bond with your pokemon does when you battle." Damian then chuckled, "I have been treating my pokemon in a way that I don't actually have a relationship with them, they are just there to battle and that is it." Ash's mouth opened a little as he heard this concession, he had not expected such a vocabulary out of a trainer, especially one like Damian. "Look Ash, you have the biggest relationship I have ever seen with your pokemon," The blue haired trainer said with a frown, which he then turned into a smirk, "You better not lose this tournament, it is something that you deserve to win."

"Huh?" Ash asked extremely dumbfounded of what Damian was trying to say.

"Look, it is simple," Damian replied as he turned back towards Ash. "If you could deal with me, then you can go through anything, so win the last two battles and get this title."

"Alright! I will!" Ash exclaimed as he pumped his fist. Damian did not even turn around, all he did was raise his right hand in a way that saluted the raven haired trainer as he began to walk away. The smile that Ash had on his face reflected light of the sun setting over the horizon. This was when Ash knew that he had gained Damian's ultimate respect, that he had developed something that even the most stubborn could find impressive. It was all like a flash as the sky got darker, and Damian was gone from view, clearly having left the trainer's village.

"Pikachu, let's go train," Ash said breaking the silence as he pumped his fist. The electric rodent nodded as the two began to walk away from the walkway filled with people walking and into the same practice field where Ash had trained before. Reaching into his belt, the raven haired trainer threw a pokeball into the air that opened to a bright flashing light that then materialized into Greninja, who was with his hands crossed in a powerful standing position.

"Ninja!" The sinister water type called out as he pumped his fist in front of Ash. The raven haired trainer smirked as he then looked at the two pokemon that were now in front of him.

"Alright guys, tomorrow is a big day, we will have one of the most intense battles yet, and I am definitely going to be needing you two to give it your all!" Ash declared as he pumped his fist as well. Looking at the practice field, he then came up with an idea, "Pikachu, how about you take one side and Greninja, you take the other, this little bit of training will help us tomorrow!" The two pokemon nodded before then going their separate ways on the battlefield, engaging in a staredown. Ash made his command as he raised his hand into the air: "Greninja, water shuriken! Pikachu use iron tail and send yourself into the air!"

"NINJA!" Greninja shouted as he reached for the markings on his legs and then clapped his hands together to form a shuriken that he then launched towards the electric mouse.

"Pika…" Pikachu cried as he jumped into the air and made his tail stiffen and glow white. The electric mouse then front flipped as he made his tail interact with the blue water type ninja star. "PIKA!" Pikachu cried as he then launched himself into the air with an explosion of energy under him caused by the shuriken touching the ground. "Pikachu!" Pikachu smirked as he looked down on the sinister water type, who was also smirking under his scarf.

"Let's get this really fired up!" Ash exclaimed as he smiled brightly. "Pikachu use thunderbolt and Greninja, dodge the attack by jumping into the air!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu cried as he charged up electricity and then fired it off towards the water type that was watching carefully as the attack came closer. The electricity arced along the ground and then a closeup of Greninja's eye shows the attack getting closer and then the frog ninja visibly jumping into the air to be in pair with the electric mouse who was on the air looking slightly surprised by the speed of the dodge.

Ash saw this and swung his arm around in front of his face: "Iron tail and aqua blade!" Pikachu made his tail stiffen and glow white again while Greninja made a dark blue kunai knife. The two attacks collided in mid air and caused a shockwave to echo through the practice field to then make both pokemon stumble and fall back to their sides of the field. "Not bad guys, I can see you two are ready for the battle tomorrow!"

"Pika!"

"Ninja!"

"Greninja," Ash said as he began to walk over to the frog ninja pokemon. Greninja cocked his head and looked at the raven haired trainer who was now in front of him. The two were the same height, one with a blue scarf while the other with a bright pink tongue glistening in the moonlight. "Tomorrow, we will have our rematch, but for that, we are going to need to use the very same power that we used to defeat Wulfric." Ash then extended his hand as Pikachu jumped on his shoulder. "Let's do this together!" Ash exclaimed as Greninja and he linked hands to form a firm shake. Ash knew at that moment that it was not just like a contract that he was signing with Greninja, it was a promise that they would work together, a sign that their friendship was eternal and as many people would call it: an unbreakable bond. "Pikachu, you will also have a very important role tomorow," Ash said as he turned to the electric mouse on his shoulder.

"Pika?" Pikachu asked with a smile on his face as he looked at the Kanto native with a very curious face.

"You are my carry," Ash said firmly. "After I saw you take down that Gigalith today, I just have to make sure that your power does not go to waste!" Pikachu squealed with excitement at that last statement as he then cooed to feeling Ash pet behind his ears. Ash then looked at the sinister water type in front of him and smiled as he pulled out Greninja's pokeball. "Alright Greninja, take a good rest, when Nurse Joy sees you again before the battle with Calem, I want her to be impressed with how strong you look."

"Ninja!" Greninja shouted happily as he felt his body turn into energy that then got sucked into his pokeball. Ash took one moment to look at the pokeball in his hand and smiled as he put it back in his belt in the last slot. The pokemon he had been defeated to Calem before is the pokemon that he was planning on winning the battle with. This would be a way for Calem to finally see that he had grown since the last battle as well, and definitely Ash was expecting a fun battle in which he will be facing off against his friend to attempt and get to the finals.

"Hey Pikachu, let's go back to the hotel, it is getting late and I am getting a little sleepy," Ash said as he yawned to the thought of going to sleep. Pikachu agreed with him as he also yawned, and with that the duo set off towards the hotel…

Only for something to catch their eyes:

A girl with short spiky red hair was walking through the walkway. Ash noticed she had pale skin and bright orange eyes. Her clothes consisted of a green and yellow top with a mustard yellow scarf and green pants. Her cap, which had a little white fuzzy ball on top, was also green, but it had a pattern of orange triangles on it. On her hands, the raven haired trainer saw a Chespin, something that he found adorable, but she looked 7 to Ash, and the fact that she was alone only made things a little more confusing for Ash.

Looking ahead, Ash noticed that the girl was headed right for a bench, which she was not seeing because she was attentively talking with her Chespin, something that made the raven haired trainer's heart skip a beat, "Look out!"

"Huh?" The girl asked as she looked around only to walk onto the bench and have her foot clip the underside of the wooden board to then cause the girl to stumble and fall on her face. "Oof…"

"Chespin!" The grass type starter exclaimed as he got up from in front of her and made vines come out of his sides to then pick up the girl into a sitting position. "Ches chespin?" Chespin asked as he saw the Kanto native come closer to the duo.

"Hey, are you alright?" Ash asked as he put a hand on the back of the girl, who was brushing herself off. The girl looked up, and as soon as she saw the raven haired trainer, her jaw dropped. "You took quite the fall there!" Ash said as he put a hand behind his head to then grab the girl's hand and get her on her feet. The girl smiled at the gesture as Ash then pointed at himself and said: "Hi, I'm A-"

"Ash!" The girl shouted with shining eyes as she looked at the raven haired trainer. She could recognize from the day prior the black unusual hair style, the scarf, and obviously the trademark Z marks on the cheeks of the teenager she was in front of. "You are that guy with those awesome pokemon! And the guy that stood up to the big bully, and you are also the guy that is battling tomorrow in the semifinals! I am a big fan!"

"Chespin…" The Chespin replied with a similar look on his face as he jumped on the girl's hands.

Ash smiled at the girl's action, but then the young female gave a giggle and spoke up again, "Sorry for not introducing myself, I am Mairin, and this is my partner Chespie!"

"Chespin!"

"We have come to see the Kalos League!"

"Wow," Ash said kind of taken back by how Mairin was acting. "I never knew that I had a fan, the only fan I thought I ever had were my friends, so, if you are a fan of mine then I guess you are also a fan! Nice to meet you!"

"Pi Pikachu!"

"It is so nice to meet you too Ash!" Mairin said with shining orange eyes.

"Mairin! Thank goodness I found you!" A new voice pierced the air which then turned heads towards the person that was talking. Ash noticed the familiar person that was Professor Sycamore walking towards them with a very concerned look, but also a relieved one. "I see you have met my student Ash."

"Professor!" Mairin exclaimed as she looked at Professor Sycamore who was now with the group. "I just so happen to be stumbling across the concrete, and then I tripped and fell, but then Ash came to check on me!"

"Thank you so much for watching after Mairin, Ash," Professor Sycamore said as he then put on a regretful look, "And I am sorry for asking Ash, but I have to go to a meeting with some important executives of the pokemon league, and for that I am going to need to have to leave Mairin with someone." Professor Sycamore then sighed as he said, "I was wondering if you could do that for me, please."

Looking at Mairin, Ash knew that the little girl had to be taken care of, so out of pure instinct he looked at the pokemon researcher and smiled, "Of course professor, you have done so many things for my friends and I, it is the least I could do for you!"

"Thank you so much Ash!" Professor Sycamore said as he smiled at the group. "Now I must get going, Mairin, you behave yourself with Ash, alright?"

"Will do Professor!" Mairin shouted as she waved with Ash the pokemon researcher goodbye. Professor Sycamore then walked away leaving the two alone, so Mairin decided to be the one that talked first, "So Ash, where are we going to stay tonight?"

"My room of course," Ash said as the duo walked into the hotel. "I have an extra bed for you, Pikachu likes to sleep with me instead, so I guess that you would love that bed all to yourself and Chespie!"

"Pika!"

"Wow, really? Thanks!"

"Chespie!" Chespie exclaimed in a gratitude manner that resembled his trainer. The humans and the pokemon walked into the elevator, and as soon as they reached the third floor, they got off and Ash showed them to his room, which was the one to the left of the three.

"Wow!" Mairnin shouted as she looked around the room and noticed that it was very modern looking and the beds looked very comfortable with their bright red sheets. "This is amazing! How could you afford this?"

"It is free for trainers that participate," Ash explained as he reached into the mini fridge and grabbed a chocolate bar. "Here Mairin," The Kanto native said as he handed the piece of cocoa to the red haired girl. "Have some of this so that you do not get too hungry, tomorrow is a big day, my friends could take you to sit with them when they watch me and my friends battle!"

"That would be so cool!" Mairin said as she began to eat the chocolate bar. "You know," the young Kalosian girl said between bites, "Professor Sycamore never actually let me have candy."

"Huh?" Ash asked completely perplexed as he watched Pikachu cuddle up with Mairin and Chespie in a way to show affection. "Why would he not let you eat chocolate! It is so good!"

"Well, I had chocolate the first day I was with him, but he then didn't let me," Mairin then shrugged her shoulders. "He said something about not being good for my sleep."

"Hehe, well Professor sure is just being too strict," Ash said with a prideful tone as he pointed at himself. "I eat chocolate before I go to sleep sometimes, and I always have a good snooze anyways." Noticing that Mairin was done with her chocolate, the raven haired trainer sat next to her with the television remote with in front of the television. "Let's see what is on TV, I heard that some Kalos League highlights are on there, and some battles too!"

"That is so cool," Mairin said as she watched the television turn on for it to start playing some highlights of the Kalos League, starting with Trevor against Ash. "Whoa! That is the Noivern that took down the Hydreigon!" Mairin exclaimed as she saw Noivern battling against Florges.

"Yup," Ash said as he sighed as he watched Noivern navigate through the misty terrain with his sound waves. "This battle caused Noivern to end up defeated because of the major type disadvantage, but that does not matter because Pikachu was able to defeat Florges and then later go on to defeat Aggron." The battle then showed Pikachu's electric overdrive defeat Aggron and then skip to showing Mega Charizard X against Mega Charizard Y. The Kanto native noticed the young Kalosian watching the battle high lights with sparkling eyes which caused him to chuckle as he then watched the scene change to the Satoshi man.

"Wait, that guy is the undefeated guy, right?" Mairin asked as she looked at the screen. Ash nodded slowly as he watched Aegislash go into the ground and then force another pokemon to stagger before in one hit causing the pokemon to fall over completely unable to battle. "Man, he is a tough guy."

"You tell me, watch his Zoroark use sludge bomb and flamethrower to get close to then strike with either night slash, or, if far away be able to land a night daze," Ash said with a chuckle as he rubbed under his nose. "The person is powerful, but his strategies just need to be thought out thoroughly if one were to counter them."

"You think _you_ could beat him?" Mairin asked.

Ash flinched at that question, now that he thought about it, he had never considered if he could even stand a chance against Satoshi, he seemed on a league of his own in every single battle he participated in. Ash just sighed, "I will try to beat him if I have to battle him, but sometimes one would have to hope they have what it takes."

"Well, your pokemon are awesome, Ash, maybe you _do_ have a chance," Mairin said with a smile.

"Hehe, maybe," Ash chuckled as he then saw the television show his mega Charizard launch Blastoise towards the ground in a powerful manner. 'Wow, now that I think about it, it is very impressive that I could come up with that strategy on the spot, I didn't even think it would work,' Ash thought.

"Wow Ash, how did you know that hurling a Blastoise from the air would get you the win?" Mairin asked with a curious voice. "The way that Blastoise fell made it seem like if you were throwing a baseball at full speed towards the ground, you should call your Charizard a baseball pitcher!"

"Chespin!" Chespie agreed with a cheerful voice.

"A baseball pitcher?" Ash asked with a chuckle. "Pikachu what do you think? Should we call Charizard, Charuth?"

"Pika pika pik pika pika," Pikachu began to laugh very uncontrollably as Mairin looked at Ash and face palmed.

"Babe Ruth was not a pitcher," Mairin said with a very disapproving voice. "I think you should call him SuperZard! He can fly and he can hurl you with super strength!"

"I like it, I am going to ask Charizard what he thinks," Ash said as he pulled out Charizard's pokeball. "What do you think?" The pokeball began to shake uncontrollably which caused Ash to flinch. "Maybe not…" The pokeball relaxed and Ash sighed. "Sorry Mairin, he didn't like it."

Mairin chuckled, "It is alright, I think Charizard sounded better anyways."

"You're right Mairin," Ash renounced as he chuckled a little. "Anyways, tomorrow is my big battle against Calem, and you are not going to want to miss that one!" The raven haired trainer exclaimed as he pumped his fist. Ash then put a hand behind his head and said, "Of course, what am I to advertize my battles."

"I can't wait either Ash!" The redhead shouted as she hugged Chespie. "Chespie and I will be there to cheer you guys on!" Ash smiled at that last part as he then walked over to the remote and shut off the television that was now playing a commercial break.

"Alright then, let's go to sleep," The Kanto native said as he then shut off the light and went to his bed as he noticed that Mairin had tucked herself into bed as well. Chespie was right above her and Ash watched as Pikachu went to sleep on Ash's bed. "Good night Mairin," The raven haired trainer said as he removed his fingerless gloves and cap to then take off his scarf and set it down on the bedside table before lying down next to his Pikachu.

 **At an hour past midnight:**

The night was very quiet, and Ash was sleeping soundly, it was just his intuition that woke him up in the middle of the night. When he woke up, he looked at all the cracks and crevices on the roof of the hotel, like the night before his big rematch against Wulfric. The raven haired trainer felt the same thing: Excitement, nerves, adrenaline. It kept him from sleeping which made him a little frustrated as he looked around the room, his body seemingly completely used to the darkness of the room as he looked around.

Pikachu was sleeping soundly at the foot of Ash's bed, this made him smile, but then looking to his left, the contents of the other bed made him go wide eyed. Mairin was tossing and turning, mumbling something in her sleep. Instantly, Ash went to her slowly, not to wake up Pikachu or Chespie, the green spiky mole was sleeping next to the redhead, but not too close that Ash could not get close to her. "What is wrong?" Ash whispered to himself as he then got the idea to put his hand on the young girl's forehead…

Ash flinched feeling the burning sensation that was being transmitted from the body temperature of the girl to the hand of the raven haired trainer, "A fever… oh no," Ash muttered as he did not know what to do. "Maybe I can… Oh man I need help," Looking around and deciding not to disturb the other pokemon, Ash grabbed Mairin, who was still asleep and cradled her in her arms. She found her surprisingly light, which made him relieved that there was no way he could accidentally drop the small girl.

Slowly opening the door and going into the hallway, Ash looked at his options: Serena or Brock… Ash then realized that Brock was sleeping with both Clemont AND Bonnie in his room which easily made the decision for Ash.

Knocking on the door to the honey blonde's room, Ash just had one thought in his mind: "Please open up!" Ash had a distressed look on his face as he could feel the unusual warmth that Mairin was passing onto him, but it was obvious that he needed someone else's view on this. The raven haired trainer listened closely and noticed that the redhead was saying something along the lines of "mom, dad" and something like: "Please wake up…"

"Ash?" Serena asked as she rubbed her eyes. She was in her pajamas, which was a monster like hoodie that the honey blonde liked to wear. Taking to time to adjust to her surroundings, Serena opened her bright blue eyes and her eyes instantly fell on Mairin, who was in the trainer's hands. "Ash… Is that a-"

"Please help," Ash managed to throw out in a very worried way that made Ash signal for the raven haired trainer to walk in. Ash hurryingly settled the small girl down on Bonnie's bed as Serena followed up behind him. One look at the honey blonde told Ash what he was expecting: Serena had questions. "I will explain later, but I think she is coming down with a fever." Serena nodded at this as she then came next to the girl and felt her forehead.

The honey blonde recoiled just by touching the skin of the small girl, "She is burning up, Ash hand me a wash cloth and some water from the sink, please."

"On it," Ash said as he walked away to get the supplies that Serena said as the honey blonde haired girl noticed that the small girl in the bed was beginning to wake up.

"Mom! Dad!" Mairin shouted which surprised the honey blonde noticing that the redhead began to burst into tears with her body slouched forward, almost as if she did not want to look up and see what was around her. "Huh?" Mairin asked as she suddenly felt a warm pair of arms wrap around her. The redhead looked up from her position to see a female with short honey blonde hair and deep blue eyes who seemed to be in her pajamas as well. "W-who are you?" The young girl suddenly asked as she looked at Serena.

"My name is Serena, pleased to meet you," The honey blonde said as she slowly lied the girl on her back with a gentle gesture. Mairin seemed surprised as she looked up at Serena and smiled as she felt the hand of the honey blonde slowly wipe away her tears. "You are burning up, I want to help you," Serena said as he touched the place where her ribbon would usually be and then offering Marin a warm smile which the young girl mirrored. Ash then came back with the water on a small bowl that he had found in the kitchen and a washcloth from the restroom. "Thanks Ash," Serena said as she noticed the trainer smile back at her. The honey blonde grabbed the washcloth and then dipped it in the water to then put it on the forehead of the small redhead.

Instantly, Serena saw the results as she could feel less of a burning sensation when she touched the cheek of the young girl. "I think she will be fine, thanks to you Serena," Ash said as he stood next to the honey blonde. The raven haired trainer then made a move to show his appreciation to the young performer by looking at her and smiling, "You know, _you will make a great mother one day_."

"What?" Serena asked with a shy expression. "I just like making people smile, that is really it Ash."

"But there is more to it," Ash responded. The small girl lying in the bed was overhearing the conversation, obviously beginning to understand the chemistry of the two trainers that were taking care of her. "Look Serena, this might sound crazy, but you are taking care of her almost like a mother."

Mother…

That was what stuck out to Mairin the most as she overheard the conversation. It is as if she was being taken care by two parents.

"Ash," Serena said in awe as she looked down at her hands with a small smile appearing in her face. "... Maybe someday, but right now, I feel like you should go back to your room and rest up for tomorrow, you have a big day and I do not want you to lose any more sleep."

"But-"

"No buts Ash," Serena said with a firm tone, 'except if it's mine' Serena thought with a funny look on her face as she turned back to see the raven haired trainer face to face. "Take a good rest, I will look after Mairin."

"Alright," Ash said with a sigh as he then looked at the small girl and put a hand in her cheek which caused Mairin to slowly wake up. "Mairin, I will look after Chespie for you tonight."

Mairin slowly nodded as Ash took a deep breath and began to leave the room. As soon as he left, he closed the door behind him which left the two girls alone in the room with one looking down at the smaller girl. "You love him, don't you?" Mairin asked out of the blue which made the honey blonde girl recoil with a tomato red coloring on her face.

"W-what are you talking about?" Serena asked with a very distressed look on her face as she looked down at Mairin trying to conceal her blush.

The redhead smiled and looked at the roof with what Serena could tell were very sad eyes, "Once, my mom and dad took care of me in a way like Ash and you did…" Mairin then took a deep breath. "Mom said something similar to my dad when she was told she was amazing at taking care of children… Then mom told dad to go sleep so that he did not lose sleep for his work, where he was going to work all day the next day." Mairin then closed her eyes, "You talk to Ash as if he were your husband in a way," Mairin concluded as she smiled.

"Y-you…" Serena sputtered out as she then sighed and kneeled down in front of the redhead girl and smiled, "Please don't tell Ash." The young girl nodded at this as the honey blonde then checked her forehead to feel for her body temperature, and sure enough, it had decreased a lot since Serena had first felt the skin. "So, what is your name?"

"Mairin," The young girl said with a soft voice.

Serena then gave a chuckle, "It is such a cute name, if you don't mind me wondering, how did you even end up in Ash's room after all?"

Mairin then sighed, "Well, it is a long story, but to keep it simple, Ash found me after I tripped and fell on the concrete, but then Professor Sycamore came and asked him to take care of me because he had an important meeting to go to."

Serena cocked an eyebrow as she heard this and looked down at the girl with a confused expression, "So, you are Professor Sycamore's daughter?"

Mairin frowned as she then closed her eyes, her voice slightly breaking as she talked, "No, I am nobody's daughter… At least not anymore."

Serena gasped as if she had just been hit with a truck, instantly, it clicked on her mind, Mairin had no parents, that is why there was sadness in her eyes when she mentioned her parents before, "Mairin, I am so sorry… I didn't know."

"I-It's alright," Mairin managed to say with with a very soft voice. "I know that they would want me to keep going… But I know that I am so young to be left alone." Mairin then looked up with a smile, looking at the dimly lit ceiling with a sigh, "One day, I want to check out the world… But Professor Sycamore said that I was too young to go out on my own, and worse is that Professor Sycamore is always busy to take me anywhere."

"Oh Mairin," Serena said with a smile. "Don't worry, something will work out."

"Yea," Mairin said as she closed her eyes one last time. "I am tired, let's go to sleep."

Serena chuckled at this as she got up and turned off the dimmed light, "Sure, if we want to see Ash win tomorrow, then we need to have all of our energy!" Serena then jumped into her bed and looked in the dark room in the direction in which Mairin was sleeping, "Good night Mairin, sweet dreams."

"Serena," Mairin said as she felt herself drifting off into dreamland. "Thank you…"

And from there on out, no more words were spoken for the rest of the night.

 **Pokemon League HQ:**

All the elite four members with the exception of Malva, to everyone's wonder where there with Night and professor Sycamore in a conference table talking. There seemed to be some disagreement as the trainer with the Jolteon seemed to have been triggered by one of the remarks by the champion.

"You are kidding me right?" Night said as he face palmed. "I nearly defeated him with just my Jolteon and Decidueye, I can take him down if there is a danger that arises!"

"Jolteon!"

"Night Lysandre will have more than just his pokemon, he will be raining havoc all through the region!" Diantha retaliated against the champion of the Soul Stadium. "How do you expect to take his administrators and his possible reinforcements down? The next thing you know, Team Flare has formed an alliance with another organization and is going to attempt to take down the entire Kalos Region."

"Well, what other help can we get? I already talked to Steven Stone and the man did not believe me, he claimed Lysandre had 'good intentions', at the same time Iris has been receiving many challengers in Unova, so she backed out. Cynthia said that despite the danger that arises, she has to protect Sinnoh only to the best of her ability. Lance, like always, responds in a similar matter to Cynthia claiming he has to be more careful because he is taking care of both Kanto and Johto. The only other person willing to help us is Professor Kukui from the Alola region," Night said with a very irritated voice. "Look, I am not saying that Professor Kukui is weak, but he can get annoying when he says 'Alola!' all the time like if it were paradise."

"Professor Kukui, who is that?" Siebold asked with a very concerned voice as he put a hand to his chin. The blonde chef then narrowed his eyes. "Although I know his pokemon and he can be of assistance, I still believe we should know who our allies are."

"He has a point," Dransa agreed as she turned to Diantha. "Are you sure that we can count on this Kukui person?"

"He is stronger than the Kahuna's in Alola, I am not going to get into much detail about the system there as it is complicated," Night replied with a cross of his arms. "The thing is that they still have no Pokemon League, but Kukui is definitely a trainer you want to take lightly if you go against him."

"He is also a researcher in Z moves," Professor Sycamore said as she turned to Diantha. "Combine that with mega evolution and we can have a powerful team."

Winkstorm spoke next with an extremely curious voice as he looked at the Kalos Champion, "Wasn't a Z move the thing that the Hau person used in the Kalos League against Ash?"

"It seemed like it was," Diantha said as she narrowed her eyes. "Ash managed to avoid the attack all together, so it was definitely something that one has to be cautious with because if that hit may have landed, then Ash may have lost the battle," Diantha said as she looked at the steel type trainer. "Z moves do not look like something that anyone would want to mess with, and people like Ash know that first hand."

"I know about…" Night started which turned the attention of everyone to him. "Well, it is some people that are so special, they have the power of the Z crystals embedded into their body, it means that subconsciously, they are able to perform Z moves with pokemon without even having to hold a Z ring at all."

"Night, do you know of anyone with these capabilities?" Professor Sycamore asked with a concerned voice. "If you do you must tell me who it is."

"I only know my father has it, of course, I can't call him because he is uh-... Anyways, if it is hereditary, I did not get it, which means that there is only one more possibility for a person that may have this power," Night replied with a serious face.

"Who is it?" Everyone asked in unison.

"I… Well, how do I put this… The only other person that could have it is not me, so it only leaves my sister on this…" Night then took a deep breath as he said something that he did not want to make public just yet. "Don't tell anyone, but my suspicions are that _Serena_ may have this power."

 **A/N: OH SNAP! Serena has this power? Well, I kind of have to admit that when I wrote chapter 13, I did not know about Z rings so I made Serena use hydro vortex without a Z ring.**

 **So, if someone can achieve an alternate and more powerful form with their pokemon without a mega stone or a keystone, but with the requirement of a strong bond… Then why not do the same thing with Z moves?**

 **Anyways, next chapter we begin with a very powerful battle between Ashura and Seth and possibly get to see the beginning of Ash vs Calem… One of the well awaited battles of the Kalos League!**

 **I hope you guys enjoyed, remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**


	47. Chapter 47

**At the stadium:**

" **Swoosh!"** Ash watched as a jet flew overhead of him. It created a supersonic blast that shook the ears of the raven haired trainer and also ruffled his scarf as he looked forward and adjusted his cap with a smile. "This is it, huh?" Ash heard Mairin ask from behind him.

Ash turned around and smiled at the girl, Serena, Bonnie, Clemont, and Brock were all there watching as the raven haired trainer began to make his walk separated from the others to go to the dugouts, "Don't worry, I will win, and when I do, I will find you guys!"

"Good luck Ash!" Serena called out with a smile. "We will take care of Mairin for you and Professor Sycamore!"

"Yea!" Bonnie chanted as she looked over towards the redhead girl who was handling her Chespin. "We can sit together and cheer on for Ash! This is going to be an awesome battle!" Mairin smiled at this and high fived with the lemon blonde girl as the larger tanned male turned to the Kanto native.

"Alright Ash," Brock encouraged as he pumped his fist. "Go ahead and win this battle! Your team will be amazing, don't forget that!"

"And don't forget that this is the semi finals, expect your opponent to be stronger than any opponent you have ever battled, specially since this is Calem, expect a tough struggle between friends," Clemont implied as he adjusted his glasses and looked towards where the people were entering the stadium. It was starting to get packed, and the lemon blonde haired teenager knew that seats would have to be really hard to get if they did not enter right away. "Alright, I think it is time that we go and take our seats before there is none left."

"I agree," Brock said. "Good luck Ash!"

"We will be cheering you on with everything we got!" Bonnie and Mairin both shouted as Dedenne and Squishy also put some cheers of happiness towards the raven haired trainer and Chespie pumped his fist as well.

"Go get'em Ash!" Serena finally said with a wink. "You will do great, I know you will!" Ash could not help and stare at the way that the breeze made her hair wave perfectly, which lead to the honey blonde girl to part her hair to one side.

"Pika Pikachu!" Pikachu chanted as Ash took a deep breath trying to forget what he had just been focused on. The raven haired trainer then nodded and smiled as he began to walk the other way. The breeze slowly making his hair move from side to side, and the sun making a glint with his key stone.

"Alright Pikachu, let's go in here," Ash said as he looked at his designated trainer's lounge to go inside. Walking in, Ash saw the vast room that he was in since the league started before his matches. Looking around, Ash's eyes fell on the cloaked man, who was sitting on the floor, he had a Pikachu in front of him, one that Ash found oddly familiar. "Pika," Ash mouthed as he noticed Pikachu began to get down from his shoulder and approach the pokemon of the same species.

"So I see you somehow figured out the name of my Pikachu," the cloaked man responded, Ash gasped, the voice seemed so familiar.

"He's… He's my father's Pikachu, how come you-" Ash went wide eyed noticed as the man stood up with what looked like a smirk shadowing his eyes.

Ash's jaw dropped when he suddenly saw the man remove his covering. The raven haired trainer seemed afraid to look up, but watching Pika go up to the shoulder of the man, Ash had no doubt of who was in front of him. Standing there facing each other were two trainers: both with raven haired, both with fingerless gloves, both with an electric rodent of the same species on their shoulders. "Son, it is good to see you again," Ashura said as he shadowed his eyes in his hair.

"D-dad… Why are you here? Why are you not attacking me?... Why did you just reveal yourself to me?" Ash said while mimicking his father's movements and also looking down. Suddenly, bother trainers got zapped with a non lethal jolt of electricity from their shoulders and looked towards their electric rodents with confused glances. "Pikachu?"

Both mouses jumped from their trainer's shoulders and met in the middle of the floor between them and shook hands. Ash and Ashura looked at the mouses and then looked back at each other egape. "Ash," Ashura then began with a shadowed look. "My match is next, but before I go, promise me one thing." Ash looked at the older man with a confused look only for the older man to put his cloaked covering back on over his face. "Promise me you will forgive me for how terrible of a person I have been to you in the past."

Ash stood there silently with a million thoughts on his head. The younger boy clenched his fists violently. On one hand he wanted to forgive his father and finally get this entire mess out of his way and possibly go into a new and more prosperous future… But on the other hand, the pain was too great and terrible to look back on, just thinking about it made the smaller boy hurt. Ash just took a deep breath as he then watched Pika leave Pikachu's side and join the older man with Z marks to then open his mouth with his best thought out response: "I will think about it."

Ashura just nodded as he then headed out the door leaving a dumbfounded Ash sitting lethargically on the room. Pikachu nudged him, which made the raven haired trainer sigh as he looked at the small electric mouse, "Am I doing the right thing?" Pikachu asked as Ash looked down.

"Pika... PIKA PIKACHU PI PIKACHU!" The electric rodent called out, instantly snapping Ash out of his thoughts.

"You are right Pikachu, let's forget about this for a moment and think about defeating Calem! I will need a strong team to start this out with too," Ash said as he then put a hand to his chin. "Ever since the league started, Calem has always opened up with his iconic fire bird, I think I have the perfect counter to that!" Ash exclaimed with a very amused tone as he pulled out a pokeball to reveal a pokemon to appear in front of him. The pokemon looked around with a confused look until his eyes fell on Ash and made a happy battle cry. "Alright, for this battle, you are my captain," Ash said as he took off his scarf and began to wrap it around the neck of the pokemon. "This will be my symbol of captainship for my team during this important battle!"

"Pi Pikachu!" Pikachu cried as he jumped with a fistpump right in front of this pokemon.

 **A/N: What pokemon did Ash just put his scarf around and is planning to lead with? Find out when the battle starts, it will be an extremely amazing battle if you ask me, so I am excited! Calem with his strong roster of pokemon really counter well against Ash's team, I can tell you that right off the bat!**

 **What will Ash do? Will Ash be ultimately defeated? Or will Ash have an ultimate victorious battle against his rival?**

 **Only time will tell…**

 **Oh by the way, this battle is a two parter instead of three :P.**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 47- The Promised Battle!

 **At the battlefield:**

Ashura smirked under his cloak as he recalled his defeated Darkrai back into his pokeball to then look back up towards the battlefield to see Seth pumping his fist with his mega Swampert right in front of him. "Not bad, you definitely have power in your team," Ashura said as he put the pokeball back into his belt. He had been expecting his Darkrai to have been defeated just like it had against Ash, he was not going to underestimate a trainer that made it to the semifinals of the Kalos League.

" _Amazing! And Satoshi's Darkrai has just been defeated by Seth's mega Swampert!"_

"SWWWAAAAMMMP!" Swampert called out with an extremely intimidating cry as he punched the grass below.

"We just keep battling until we get stronger and stronger!" Seth called out as he put on a powerful pose. "Swampert and I will be able to defeat any opponent that gets in our way!"

"Interesting," Ashura said as he looked back up at the scoreboard and smirked:

 **Seth:** _Electrode Typhlosion Staraptor Gliscor Tyrantrum_ **Swampert**

 **Satoshi:** _Darkrai_ (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) **(pokeball)**

"I am going to use one of my all time strongest," Ashura said out loud as he pointed forward. "Pika, let's battle!" The crowd cheered as they saw a small Pikachu go out of the cloak of the covered man, the small rodent having hair perked up on top of his head. The battle was resumed by the referee and the first to take the move was Ashura, "I want to show you my power, Pika, use thunderpunch on the ground!"

" _A Pikachu, and just like Ash, Satoshi has a mighty electric type on his side as portraying amazing power with unleashing the first move, thunderpunch!"_

"Pika! Pika… CHU!" Pika exclaimed as he jumped into the air with his fist beginning to crackle with a lot of electricity. Suddenly, Pika then reeled his fist back and then swung forward to make the electricity collide completely with the ground and causing a chain reaction of electricity to spark all over the arena and also make the scoreboard flicker on and off as the screens that were showing highlights of the battle were also making arcing sounds as Seth flinched to see that Swampert had sparks coming out of him in small intervals.

" _What? It has somehow caused Swampert to get paralyzed!"_

"Swampert, are you alright?"

"Swamp…"

Seth gritted his teeth as he looked forward and then put his fist out, "Get this over with, earthquake!" The water and ground type did not even blink as he clapped his hands together to then punch the ground. The grass began to shake and batter as Ashura grinned.

"Let's try to avoid the ground, volt tackle and then go in with iron tail!" Ashura commanded as he put his palm out. Pika got to work as he made a small roar like usual and began to charge the field with a quick attack like trail that then evolved into an aura of electricity, which enveloped the electric type as he jumped from the sections of the grass that were splitting apart. As soon as the electric rodent then got in range, he made his tail glow white and stiffen as he jumped into the air to be in front of the water and ground type.

"CHU PI!" Pika called out as he slammed his tail down on the head of the swamp pokemon. As soon as that happened, the electric type got propelled into the air with a lot of speed as he looked down to see the water type slowly begin to get back up.

"Alright then, think that it is fun to play this game?" Seth asked with a panicked voice that was vague, but strong enough for Ashura to hear. "Go up and use aqua jet!"

" _This seems like a risky move from Seth, Pikachu appears to have the higher ground!"_

"Swamp… SWAMPERT!" Swampert called out as he made a torrent of water shoot up around him to then cause the water type to shoot up with his fists out in the direction of Pika, who was now arching and beginning to fall.

"Pika?" Pika asked as he saw the incoming water type attack.

Ashura smirked as he saw this, "Thunder punch again, straight down!"

"Pika…. CHUPI!" Pika called out as he made his electric glowing fist collide with the powerful water torrent that was still pushing up towards him. The electric type did not back down as he then felt both he and the water type falling. "PIKA!" Pika called out as he then pushed down even farther with his entire body, which caused the water type to fall straight down like a bullet and crash into the ground with a powerful explosion that riddled through the field which left the entire stadium silent awaiting the result of the battle.

"Swamp…" Swampert groaned on the ground as he reverted back into his regular form.

"Swampert is unable to battle, that means the win goes to Satoshi!" The referee exclaimed as Pika landed in front of Ashura. The electric type looked over to his trainer and then ran back to his cloak, where he hid himself from the outside to then have Ashura begin to walk away from the stadium and out of the dugout. The scoreboard then updated to show the winner of the battle, which was something that Ashura could not care less about.

" _And there you have it! Satoshi has made it to the finals!"_

Ashura heard the crowd cheer as he then ran into someone at the edge of the hallway, it was Night, who was looking at him with a slightly confused look as Jolteon looked at the pokemon master with curiosity, "Why did you bring back Darkrai? I thought that you weren't using him."

"I didn't want to tire out Zoroark and Aegislash with a decently powerful trainer," Ashura said calmly. "I want those two to enjoy their battle off anyways."

"Will you be using Darkrai in the finals?" Night asked with a sarcastic tone.

"Maybe, depends on who my opponent is, both trainers that will clash in a couple of minutes are not trainers to take lightly, I will try my hardest against whoever I am matched up against," The older raven haired trainer said as he began to walk away. "Also…" Ashura stopped walking to then make Night listen to him. "You know what I told you about Serena?"

"Urgh, but how will I tell her after all these years that we are long lost siblings?" Night asked with a very disgusted tone. "I don't even know if my mom would recognize me anyways…"

"She will," Ashura replied as he sighed. "I had spent a long time without seeing my son and I still remembered him, so Grace can do the same thing as well." Night frowned as he then nodded at Ashura and began to walk the opposite way to then see a trainer coming his way, the one that Night recognized as being the opponent that Ash would have in his match.

"Hey," Night said as he saluted the trainer. "Good luck out there, you will need it."

"I will," The boy said as he looked down at his watch on his left wrist to see the keystone sparkling in the light. "This is the battle that I had been waiting to have for the longest time." The other teenager then smiled, "I also made Manectric a lot faster and mastered that psycho cut strategy!"

"You know I made that last one up, right?" Night replied with a slight laugh before then turning to his Jolteon and saying, "Well, I am going to go watch the battle, have fun out there!" With that, the spiky haired teenager began to move away with his electric type as the other teenager smirked as he looked at the stairs next to him and began to walk up them.

"Haha, made it up? I made it real," The boy said as he then walked into the light out of the dugouts.

 **With Ash:**

"The preparations are done," Ash said as Pikachu jumped to his shoulder. "Let's give Calem the best battle ever!"

"Pika!"

"Alright, here goes!" Ash exclaimed as he heard the cheering of the stands get louder and louder as he approached the light. The raven haired trainer took one look at his Pikachu one more time before he then put his foot into the shining sun that was beaming into the hexagonal shaped hallway that was leading to the trainer's platform. "Let's do this," Ash muttered as he felt the brightness of the giant arena consume him.

 **At the stands:**

Everyone looked at the scoreboard, who was showing that Calem and Ash were the next battlers. "This is going to be a very tough battle," Bonnie said. "I don't know who will win, so I am getting nervous."

"I personally do not know who I am going to cheer for," Tierno said with a frustrated tone as he crossed his arms. "I was not expecting this matchup either."

"I am going to cheer for both of them," Trevor responded to his friend. "There is no hard feelings for how things end up, so I know that it does not matter who wins, it is a battle that we all want to enjoy until the very end."

Serena heard the crowd cheer as she then felt a pokeball open right in front of her. "Pichu!" Kapi called out as she looked onto the field with an excited voice as her trainer smiled back.

"Chespin ches!"

"Come on Ash," Mairin whispered to herself as she looked at the battle. "This battle is for you to win."

Serena looked around to hear the people begin to cheer. The giant rows of seats all covering the stadium from many perspectives while the sun beamed down. Serena looked at Kapi and saw how the sun was making her fur brighter than ever, after that, the Kalos performer looked at the battlefield to see two figures walking through the dugouts to then look up at each other.

" _Ash! Calem!"_

The two trainers moved up until they reached the trainer's platform, which had a large gap separating the two trainers while they engaged in a staredown.

On their own private place to be seated under the scoreboard, the champion and the researcher were looking down towards the arena that was cheering with a sign of desire for the battle to start. Both of them were also very aware of who was going to be going against each other, it was to no surprise that both Ash and Calem were very powerful trainers.

"So this will be the a battle between good friends, Ash, who battles with passion, and Calem, who also battles with a burning spirit," Diantha commented as she looked at the field.

"I am expecting an amazing battle, let's see what happens," Professor Sycamore said with a tinge of excitement.

 **At the battlefield:**

'Calem, I never thought that I would end up having such an amazing battle with you, but here we are, about the have the battle that we promised each other,' Ash thought as a view of the side of his face portrayed gleaming eyes and his hair glowing brightly to the sound of the cheers. Pikachu was then shown leaping off of Ash's shoulder and show a smirk of determination while collecting electricity on his bright red cheeks.

The view then circled around and came to the side of Calem's face, who had a sense of thrill already instilled in his expression. His black jacket glistening with a white reflection in the sunlight and his jet black hair dangled around his face. 'Ash, no holding back, we promised this would be our battle, and now we must settle the score with each other in the biggest stage possible,' Calem thought as the view then revolved to show his other side, his pale skin and brown eyes glistening as well as the Kalos native pumped his fist. 'I would have never asked for such a better opponent!'

The scene then revolved around both trainers as it then showed a close up of both smiling trainers in front of each other. A gust of wind then blew which made their hair wave a little. 'I WON'T LOSE!' Both trainers exclaimed inside of their heads.

" _And let's see what battlefield will be the stage for this seemingly amazing matchup!"_

Ash heard the crowd cheer as the battlefield appeared in front of him and Calem. Looking at forward, the battlefield was covered in shallow and murky looking water. There was also occasional trees coming out of the water, which was also covered in some patches of grass.

" _The trainers better get prepared for pokemon that are going to be covered in mud! This battle will begin in a swamp field!"_

'If Calem wants to start things aerial, then like I predicted before, he is going to lead with the pokemon I thought he would,' Ash thought as he narrowed his eyes and looked around to see Pikachu touching the water with his hand to then pull his paw out to find out that his hand was covered in weird solution that was like water, but had a very foul smell along with a dirty look. "Pika, Pikachu," Pikachu said as he looked back at Ash.

"Right," Ash said as he looked forward. "We will have to use the field to our advantage." The raven haired trainer then looked forward to his smirking opponent. "Let's give this all we have Calem!"

Calem gave a genuine smile and returned the nod back towards Ash, something that he expected would come from someone as determined and spirited as the Kanto native. 'I am so looking forward to this battle, giving it our all is something that I have been wanting to do, and making this battle a great one is something we can both do,' Calem thought as he then pumped his fist. "I would not have it any other way!"

"Trainers, listen up, this will be an official six on six pokemon battle, the battle will be over when all pokemon on either side are unable to continue," The referee stated as he then looked at the two trainers and shouted. "Furthermore, after three pokemon on either side are unable to continue, there will be an intermission to change fields." The referee then put his arms out and made his next command to the two trainers: "Now, choose your first pokemon!"

Calem was the faster one at taking out his lead. He expanded the pokeball and then threw it onto the field with a powerful stance, "Let's go! Talonflame!" The pokeball arched and then opened to materialize into a fire type bird like pokemon with large wings and a very regal stature that had a menacing look on his face.

"Talon!" Talonflame called out as he circled the field over Ash causing the raven haired trainer to hold his cap with a smile to then see the fire and flying type flap his wings in a stationary flight above Calem. "Talon FLAME!"

'I knew he would lead with Talonflame!' Ash thought as he grabbed a pokeball from his belt. "I CHOOSE YOU!" Ash shouted as he then launched the pokeball into the air as high as he could towards the sun. A bright light then appeared which then cast a large shadow over the stadium. Ash smirked as he watched the large winged bat attract the attention from all of the stands thus causing some commotion.

"VERN!" Noivern shouted while sporting the trademark scarf around his neck as he flew around Calem and Talonflame to then land right next to the raven haired trainer. "Noi…" Noivern grunted as he used his claws to take off Ash's bright blue scarf to then hand it to the raven haired trainer, who immediately put it back on. "NOIVERN!" Noivern shouted as he then took the skies with a gust of wind that made Ash's clothes shake. "Vern!" Noivern shouted as he put himself in the same position as Talonflame, but for Ash.

" _We are beginning with an aerial battle! Noivern against Talonflame which means that we have to make sure they don't blow us away from our seats! This will already be an interesting matchup!"_

"Let the battle…" The ref said with his hand up to then strike down towards the murky water. "BEGIN!"

 **Battle Music Begin! Ash (Noivern) vs Calem (Talonflame):**

"Fly!" Both trainers called out as they put their palms in front of them. The two pokemon instantly flapped their wings and then began to encircle each other as they began to climb up and up towards the top of the stadium to a point in which the entire hexagonal shape was visible before then diving back down. The two pokemon then leveled off and began to split off in their own directions, something that made the raven haired trainer smirk.

"Alright Noivern, go in with sky attack!"

"Charge in with flare blitz!"

"Noivern!" Noivern cried as he instantly made himself glow in celestial energy with his direction changing towards the middle of the field.

"Flame!" Talonflame shouted as he ignited his feathers into flames that streaked around the flying type bird of prey.

Two streaks from the two attacks trailed behind the pokemon as they closed the gap between them on top of the swamp arena. " **BOOM!"** Instantly the explosion rang out with a very huge shockwave that covered the top of the arena covered in smoke with the two flying types flying through the smoke at blinding speed in the direction of Calem's trainer platform. " **SWOOSH!"** "Urgh…" Calem grunted as he covered his face to the flying types that whooshed right over him. Turning around, the black haired trainer then looked at his fire type and shouted the next command: "Use fire blast!"

"Dodge it Noviern!" Ash shouted with his fist pumped.

"Talon…." Talonflame charged up as he made the area around his wings begin to encircle fire. "FLAME!" The beam with five prongs shot out and streaked through the air in the direction of the black bat, who was flying in front of the fire type. Noivern saw the attack coming and barrel rolled to have the fire beam pass right above him. "FLAME!" Another beam shot out and Noivern saw it coming as well which caused him to tuck in his wings and begin to dive towards the ground. "Talon…" Talonflame charged up as he saw Noivern come back up towards the air with a steep climb. "FLAME!"

"Vern!" Noivern shrieked in pain as he got blasted right on the back of his wings with the powerful fire type move. This made Ash flinch as he looked up with a worried expression on his face.

" _Noivern has been hit with a powerful looking fire blast! This is definitely starting out well for Calem and his mighty Talonflame!"_

"Now go in with flare blitz again!" Calem shouted as he pumped both of his fists. Talonflame ignited himself in flames as he began to now charge the pokemon with large ears that was slowly falling towards the ground.

Ash flinched a little as he saw this and narrowed his eyes, "Noivern you have to dodge this attack!" While falling, the dragon type opened his eyes as he saw the fire type headed right for him while ignited in flames. Noivern straightened himself up to then be face to face with the bird that was headed his way and then rolled to the side which caused the opposing flying type to miss. "Awesome job Noivern!" Ash said as he then noticed Talonflame coming back around with flare blitz. The Kanto native noticed this and then put his hands in front of him to then form them into two fists the punched the air in front of him. "Stop him in his tracks with supersonic!"

"Noi…." Noivern charged up as he began to then expel the sound waves from his ears towards the incoming flames. "VEEEERRRNN!"

Calem flinched as he saw Talonflame make a very surprised cry to then be stopped in mid air with his attack completely singing the air and disappearing without harming the sound wave dragon. "What now? Talonflame get out of there!" It was no use as the regional flying type kept struggling which caused Calem to grit his teeth before then smirking, "Alright, try this, air slash!" Talonflame opened his eyes and then made his wings glow white as he shot three razor blades out of his wings that went through the sound waves. The black dragon saw this and instantly stopped his attack to then shoot upwards and avoid the attack thus freeing Talonflame. "Now keep going with air slash!"

"Avoid all of them!" Ash exclaimed as he saw Talonflame getting in position behind Noivern while his wings glowed white. Noivern used his potent sound waves to avoid the incoming razors with barrel rolls and accurate ascensions into the air. Noivern and Talonflame kept the chase going as they went around the stadiums and up to be next to the stands and then circled around to be flying just under the giant scoreboard and passing right over a shocked Professor Sycamore and Diantha, who were looking up at the pokemon in slow motion as they passed.

" _A dogfight is in our hands! This battle is definitely getting intense!"_

"Flame!" Talonflame kept going as he made himself dive under Noivern to attempt to get a hit from below.

"Noivern!" Noivern shouted as he suddenly tucked in his wings and began to fall towards the ground, the razor blade passing right in front of his face in slow motion barely nicking his ear as he suddenly spread his wings out and leveled off to be right over the muddy water. "Noivern!" The bat pokemon used his soundwaves to navigate around the trees, that had very dark leaves and vines coming down from them. The sound waved dragon then curved back upwards and was face to face with Talonflame again, who was waiting patiently for Noivern to come back up.

"Not bad Calem," Ash commented as he looked at the fire type that was flying in front of his trainer. "Your Talonflame is definitely one of your strongest, and I can see why."

Calem chuckled a little at the response with a smile, "Well, Talonflame was one of the first ones I caught, and he has been my leader throughout most of my battles." The jet black trainer then put his fist out in front of him and smiled, "Talonflame, use fire blast again!"

"Noivern cut through it with sky attack, let's go!"

"Noivern!" Noivern shouted as he made himself glow into celestial energy and then circle around to go towards the attack that was headed his way. The inferno split into a barrage of prongs that were going to consume the gold glowing beast, but as soon as Noivern entered, it was clear that things were going to get intense as the sound wave dragon struggled to go through.

" _Noivern is trying to cut through the fire blast! What is Ash trying to do here?"_

 **At the stands:**

"The first battle, and they are not even testing their power at all, they are just giving it their all," Brock said in awe as he watched the struggle.

Clemont made his glasses glare, "I know, they promised they would not test each other's power knowing that it would be extremely stupid if they did. Both of them seem to be at equal strength and I can barely comprehend how Calem has been able to develop such a strong team."

" **BOOM!"** Everyone gasped as they saw both flying types get consumed in an explosion and began to fall to the ground. Then they gave a relieved sigh as they saw the two flying types straighten out and begin to fly in circles around the field completely opposite of each other's position. "This battle is not going to end easily, won't it?" Shauna commented as she held a hand to her mouth.

"They will not back down, either of them know that this battle is the one that paves the way to a chance to become champion, this is why they are battling with everything they have," Trevor said as he took a deep breath. "I don't know how much Noivern and Talonflame can keep up."

"FLARE BLITZ!"

"SKY ATTACK!"

Those two voices boomed through the stadium's speaker system and everyone's attention then turned to be above them to see Noivern and Talonflame zooming with their respective auras to be above them and clash with intense power. "Urgh!" Serena winced as she ducked her head and protected Kapi with her body. Looking back up, the honey blonde noticed the air around her was covered in smoke, then seeing Talonflame zoom past her made her feel warm… Extremely warm. " **SWOOSH!"** the warmth was taken away from the young performer as Noivern zoomed past her at blinding speed which caused her hair to blow in the direction of the breeze. "Good luck Noivern," Serena whispered clearly having support for the raven haired trainer, who was watching the flying types very carefully.

"Go guys!" Bonnie shouted as he jumped out her seat next to Mairin, who was hugging Chespie with her hands.

"Come on Ash," Mairin also whispered under her breath as she watched Noivern begin to shoot sound waves towards Talonflame.

 **At the battlefield:**

"Alright then Calem, let's see how you like water," Ash announced as he pumped his fist. "Noivern make a waterspout with hurricane!" Noivern dived down to be on top of the water to then flap his wings. The wind began to pick up which made Calem go wide eyed as he saw the breeze begin to make the trees bend in the direction of the wind _while also dropping shiny objects to the ground_. Suddenly, the water began to shoot up like a torrent and into the vortex, which slowly began to suck in Talonflame.

" _Uh oh, Talonflame is going to get staggered here, Calem better be careful!"_

"Talonflame get out of there!" Calem shouted with a very panicked tone as he then watched the fire type get caught inside the vortex with water and slowly beginning to take super effective damage. "Grrr…" Calem gritted his teeth as he watched Talonflame beginning to stagger and fall towards the ground. "Take on the eye of the storm, go!" The jet black haired trainer shouted as he put his arm out.

"Talon…" Talonflame opened his eyes open and then straightened out his wings to end up flying through the storm that was consuming the air to appear in the eye of the storm. It was calm, looking around, Talonflame found a wall of water surrounding him, it was raging in all directions, but it was calm, like a very protective shell. Looking upwards, the fire type saw the sound wave dragon controlling his storm, but at the sound of Calem's command for flare blitz, he ignited into flames and began to climb at blinding speed towards Noivern while trying to ignore the super effective attack he had just taken.

"Vern!" Noivern cried in pain as he felt the fire type attack strike his abdomen, which instantly caused the hurricane to stop swirling and the wind to calm down. " **Splash!"** both trainers had to cover themselves as the water sprinkled over them after it had made a large wave that had crashed down on the shallow ground.

Both Calem and Ash saw their opportunity and with a scene of both of their heads on either side of the screen, they both yelled their respective attacks: "FIRE BLAST!/BOOMBURST!"

The two pokemon were right in front of each other as they made circles around the stadium. The fire type shot the beam of infernal prongs while the other dragon shot the beam of transparent sound waves, both towards each other. Both pokemon made a battlecry as their attacks kept them in mid air as much as possible in a stalemate before causing a ball of energy that erupted in the middle of the battlefield in the air above the trainers and caused the shockwave to shake up the trainers. "Use sky attack!" Ash called out as he turned around and put his fist out.

"Put everything you have into this brave bird!" Calem shouted as he pointed forward.

"Noi… VERN!" Noivern shouted as he made his gold shine brightly through the stadium and go towards the clearing smoke on top of the battlefield while having a gold trail behind him.

"Talon… FLAME!" The fire and flying type shouted as he made himself glow in a blue aura of color that also had a path similar to Noivern's sky attack.

The crowd gasped as the two pokemon closed the gap between them in the middle of the air. " **BOOM!"** A close up of Ash and Calem's face showed them gritting their teeth as the smoke began to consume the upper part of the air above them. The crowd went completely silent to know what happened in this collision of two very well known flying type moves.

" _A collision of brave bird and sky attack has happened! Who will come out victorious from that amazing clash of flying type moves?"_

"What happened?" Ash asked himself as he then saw the smoke begin to clear to portray both pokemon with their respective auras still in the air, both just in the middle of the battlefield.

Suddenly, Talonflame lost his blue aura as he began to fall to the ground as Noivern also lost his color, but he flapped his wings to stay airborne and look from above. " **Crash!"** Everyone looked at the field to see the fire and flying type land in a small splash of mud to then have swirly eyes which made the referee raise his flag, "Talonflame is unable to battle, Noivern is the winner!"

" _Noivern has won! What an amazing battle to start this hype at the semifinals!"_

"Noi!" Noivern shouted as he made a small circle around the battlefield to which Ash celebrated as the flying type then landed next to him.

"Noivern, take a good rest, you deserve it," Ash said as he pulled out Noivern's pokeball and recalled the flying type. Looking forward, Ash noticed that Calem also recalled Talonflame to then whisper something to the pokeball as he then looked back up at Ash.

"I was not expecting Noivern to be so powerful when it came to sky attack," Calem admitted as he put the pokeball back in his belt. "I did not think that Talonflame could have been that overwhelmed."

"Well, it was all thanks to our great training," Ash said as he rubbed under his nose and then put his hand on his belt. "Now try this pokemon! Sceptile, you are in charge!" The pokeball opened in the air and made the grass type with a toothpick on his mouth appear with a powerful stance in front of the jet black haired trainer, who had an amused look on his face.

Calem also pulled out a pokeball and shot it forward, "Go! Toxicroak!"

"TOXIC!" Toxicroak shouted as he appeared in front of Sceptile with a very powerful look on his face, while keeping his arms apart as if getting ready to fight.

" _And there it is, a new pokemon from Calem! A Toxicroak!"_

 **At the stands:**

"Noivern is really on a roll after his performance in the quarterfinals," Diantha said as she looked at the field. "Now I see that Calem brought out a new pokemon too!" At this Professor Sycamore nodded as well.

Back to where the hero's friends are sitting, everyone is starting to get an idea of what this battle is looking like: "Ash has the upper hand, but this is Calem he is battling, so there is no reason for him to relax," Tierno said as he looked at the field to notice that both frog like pokemon seemed to enjoy the battlefield, specially being a swamp setting they were in. "Although I have to admit, the battlefield is very favorable for both pokemon."

"I agree," Brock replied as he then narrowed his eyes to look at Calem. "The fact that Calem has not used a Toxicroak in this league conference before, though, is what should be worrying Ash, he may not know much about what this pokemon does."

"I do have to admit, his Toxicroak is very strong, I once battled it when Calem brought him to the Lumiose City Gym," Clemont said as he adjusted the glare on his glasses. "My Luxray was defeated by that Toxicroak, it was just so powerful," The young inventor said. "Of course, this was some time ago, but I would not take it lightly at all."

Shauna smiled as she heard that, "The reason why Toxicroak is known to be so strong is because Calem trains him so much with Gallade, that is what has made him so agile and fast."

"Ash may be able to pull something off though," Serena replied as she grabbed her ribbon with one hand and held Kapi with the other. "I still believe Ash can defeat Toxicroak."

"Oh man, this is Shauna against Serena when it comes to their crushes battling," Bonnie whispered to Mairin who was sitting next to her. The redhead gave a small amused laugh as she looked at the two older girls.

"Let's make a deal," Mairin whispered back which perked up Bonnie's attention. "Let's try and see if we can find some boys that are best friends like Ash and Calem, and then you pick dibs on one and I pick dibs on the other."

"Deal," Bonnie said as she shook Mairin's hand as a form of friendship.

"Alright, the battle is going to start again," Trevor said as he looked forward. "I think Calem might be planning something to counter Sceptile during this battle."

 **At the battlefield:**

"Alright Sceptile, let's start this off by using leaf storm!" Ash shouted as he put a hand into the air. Sceptile got to work and turned his back on Toxicroak to then release the tornadic wave of leafs in the direction of the fighting and poison type, who was waiting carefully for Sceptile to make a move.

Just as the leafs were about to hit, Calem smirks, "Jump!" Toxicroak squatted a little before then making himself go airborne and then pointed forward. "Use high jump kick!" Toxicroak instantly made his leg glow white before shooting forward towards Sceptile, who was looking up with a serious face that Ash knew meant that the poison type was going to attempt to strike him directly.

"Block it with your arms!" Ash shouted as he swung his fist in front of his face with a serious face. Sceptile quickly made a cross with his hands and with sparks flying, began to absorb the fighting type move that made the grass type splash water around a little before digging his feet into the ground below the water. Ash then saw as the Toxicroak's leg stopped glowing, which gave him the perfect time to counter: "Now punch him and kick him back towards Calem!"

"Tile!" Sceptile shouted as he smashed his fist into the figure of the Sinnoh frog pokemon and then jumped a little to smash his right leg into his stomach that caused the opposing frog to get launched to be in front of Calem. "Sceptile," The grass type smirked as the raven haired trainer looked at the battle.

" _Sceptile has just countered with his own fighting style! What a great move from Ash!"_

"Not bad Ash," Calem praised as he looked forward and then looked at the trees, giving him an idea that he would attempt later: "Toxicroak go in for another high jump kick!"

"Lure him in Sceptile," Ash whispered to himself as he then noticed that the poison type now had his knee pointing at his grass type and was coming in at blinding speed. Seeing that Toxicroak was in his range, Ash pointed upwards, "Dodge it quick!"

"Tile!" Sceptile shouted as he jumped up and out of the way from the attack while watching Toxicroak crash into the water below with a very painful cry.

"Toxic…" Toxicroak grunted as he got on his knees obviously having taken damage. His hands supporting him as he looked at the murky water. Toxicroak noticed a small reflection in the water, and he knew that he had to get out of there soon as Calem called out to him to get up, something that Toxicroak tried to do, but had to take a small breath before he could. Noticing something very off from the water though, Toxicroak picked it up, something that made Calem go wide eyed as he saw it: _a berry_.

"Finish him now with leaf blade!" Ash called out while crossing his arms in front of his face.

"Scep!" Sceptile shouted as he made his blades glow green and then he crossed them in front of his face, with a menacing look. Seeing that Toxicroak seemed to be doing his own thing on his own, Sceptile decided to make his move "Sceptile…" Sceptile then shouted as he jumped into the air while swinging around the green blades. "SCEPTILE!" Sceptile shouted as he uncrossed his arms and struck the fighting and poison type in its back. "Sceptile!" Sceptile cried as he retracted his blades in front of Ash with a proud pose as he turned around and saw Toxicroak with a very corrupt pose looking at the grass type.

"Toxic…" Toxicroak said as he then lifted his hand and signaled for Sceptile to come at him.

" _Toxicroak has endured it!"_

"How is he still standing?" Ash asked with a very confused tone as he looked forward.

"Sitrus berry," Calem replied with a very slight chuckle. "Not only did it recover Toxicroak's health, but it also gave us a huge advantage." Ash quirked his eyebrow as Calem then looked up and smiled, "Who knew that your Noivern's hurricane would reveal that these trees are filled with berries. So now it is our turn to try something new!"

" _What an amazing idea to use the berries that were on the trees, nobody would ever think that swamp trees would have berries!"_

"What are you talking about?" Ash asked with a confused tone as he then looked at Sceptile and shouted. "Sceptile, let's mix things up, use dragon claw!" Sceptile made his pair of green claws appear as he then lunged forward with the intention of striking Toxicroak, but as soon as he made contact, the poison type just blocked it with a powerful cross of his arms.

"Sceptile?" Sceptile asked with a confused tone as he then watched Toxicroak's purple poison sac grow bigger and bigger.

"What is going on?" Ash asked as he then watched Calem pump both of his fists in a victorious pose.

"Ash, try to get through this!" Calem taunted as he pointed forward. "Use BELCH!"

"Toxic…" Toxicroak grunted as he made his poisonous sac get bigger and bigger. Ash, Pikachu and Sceptile went wide eyed as they saw this, it was clearly something the Kanto native had not expected, much less from a poison type to make itself have such a big sac. "CCCRRRROOOOAAAAAKKK!" Toxicroak shouted as he then let out a breathy purple beam to consume the water of the arena. Sceptile looked around intimidated as he noticed that the poisonous move was being directed at the ground. A view from above the arena showed the poison making a cross and bones like figure on the water before then consuming what was a bright liquid into a bubbling and intoxicated polluted waste on the ground.

" _What is this? The water has just been completely contaminated! It seems that this may cause trouble for Ash's team!"_

"SCCCCEEEEPPP!" Sceptile shrieked in pain as he then felt himself get completely consumed in poison with purple bubbles coming out from his mouth. "Sceptile…" The grass type then muttered as he felt his hands touch the water, it burned him, the sensation of the water was enough to make him wince in pain with purple sparks covering him.

" _The water is now poisoning pokemon in contact, ladies and gentlemen, this battle has just turned it's tables!"_

Ash went wide eyed as he saw this and then put his fist into the air with a desperate tone in his voice, "Sceptile, come on, put all your energy into this and use frenzy plant and trap Toxicroak!" Sceptile looked back up with with his determined eyes and engraved his fist into the water, trying to ignore the burning sensation as he then made the large plants shoot out of the ground.

The stands were packed with cheers as they saw the bubbling bath and the green plants searing upwards from the purple water in the direction of the poison and fighting type, who was still standing there with a defensive pose. A side view of Calem's mouth showed a small smirk come around as the scene the zoomed out to show the jet black haired trainer putting his hand out to the side: "Use poison jab on those plants!"

"Toxic…" Toxicroak made his fist and spike glow purple as he then struck one of the closer plants which made Ash go completely wide eyed.

"Oh no!"

"Pika!"

"Scep?" Sceptile asked in pain as he then watched the area from where Toxicroak was punching begin to make the frenzy plant turn purple. Soon enough, it had spread and instantly made Sceptile arch back in pain. "Tile…" Sceptile looked up at the air noticing his vision go completely blurry as the scene then showed the grass type himself begin to turn purple and frozen with his muscles seemingly paralyzed. "Sceptile..." The tree frog muttered as he then fell on his back with his body completely limp with his head falling onto Ash's trainer platform.

"Sceptile!" Ash shouted as he kneeled down to check on his grass type who was still sputtering purple bubbles from his mouth.

"Sceptile is unable to battle," The ref declared as he put his hand out. "Toxicroak wins!"

" _Toxicroak has just completely used his poison to defeat Sceptile with numerous moves! This is truly an unexpected turn for Calem's favor!"_

 **At the stands:**

"That… Was… Brutal…" Clemont said with a very shocked look as he watched Ash recall Sceptile back into his pokeball and praising the grass type for his efforts. "I did not expect poison to be used in such a way that completely consumed the battlefield," Clemont replied as he then narrowed his eyes. "This has just turned really back for Ash."

"I still believe that Ash can do something," Serena replied with a very determined look. "Although this is bad, have you seen some of the situations that Ash has been able to get around? I still think he can defeat Toxicroak."

"But I would not relax," Brock then said. "I did not expect the poison move combination to be this dangerous, as long as this battlefield is being used, Ash and Calem are playing the lottery because the battlefield is worse than toxic spikes now. Even worse for Ash, he does not have a steel type or a poison type. This is going to be hard for him, no doubt."

Professor Sycamore and Diantha had serious faces as they looked at the battlefield and narrowed their eyes, "That battlefield tactic might be one that would catch anyone off guard, even me," Diantha said as she crossed her arms. "Gardevoir would struggle as well being a fairy type."

"No doubt that some of these trainers here have the potential of rivaling your power of being champion," Professor Sycamore said. "Calem has just proven that his pokemon had something up his sleeve that even someone that has been using unpredictable strategies like Ash could not see coming."

 **At the battlefield:**

'I have no other way to deal with Toxicroak, even if I use flying types there is no way that I am going to risk them touching the ground, I am just going to have to make a risky move here,' Ash thought as he then pointed forward and shouted: "Pikachu! I choose you!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he jumped into the poisonous water and collected electricity on his cheeks. "Pika pika!" Pikachu shouted as he stood tall. "Pika…" Pikachu cried one last time in pain as he got consumed in a purple aura and began to breathe in purple bubbles.

" _Just by running into the field, Pikachu is poisoned, man how much hot- I mean poisonous water is Ash in right now!"_

"Grrr…" Ash muttered as he then pointed forward. "Pikachu, run forward and use quick attack!" Pikachu obeyed as he began to run towards Toxicroak, who was standing there with a very defensive tone.

"High jump kick!" Calem commanded as he also pointed forward. Toxicroak began to run through the purple liquid with a very swift pace as he then made himself jump into the air, avoiding the running attack from the electric mouse and making his leg glow white.

"Pika?" Pikachu asked as he saw the attack coming.

"Pikachu, kick up the water with iron tail and make sure that it hits Toxicroak's eyes!" Ash commanded as he put his hand forward with a bright gleam coming from his eyes. The electric mouse made his usual cry as he made his tail glow white and struck the ground with enough force that splashed up the bubbling water and made it get into the fighting type's eyes.

"Toxic!" Toxicroak shouted in pain as he felt himself strike the ground completely missing Pikachu due to not being able to see as well.

"Thunderbolt!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!"

"Protect!" Toxicroak made himself glow a cyan shield that stopped the arcing electric type move from hitting him. It was clear that the poison type was protected as he released the shield to then smirk at the electric type that landed with a splash in front of him. The poison was still in the eyes of the frog, although not harming, it was hindering his vision.

" _And protect defends Toxicroak from what could have been a very devastating hit!"_

"Pikachu…" Pikachu staggered once more due to the poison damage, this caused the raven haired trainer to put a hand up to his chin, his fingerless gloves interacting with his chin softly. "Pika!" Pikachu yelled back in a sort of desperate tone as Ash then smirked. 'If he said that there were berries in those trees, then let's find out if we can find one that will make us impenetrable to the poison.'

"Pikachu! Listen closely, go into the trees and try to find a pecha berry! It looks like a pink pointy fruit that has white spots in it!" Ash shouted as he cupped his mouth with his hands. Pikachu instantly began to move into the trees, something that Calem looked at from the side of his vision with a confused look on his face. After the electric mouse disappeared into the trees, he came back out with a green aura surrounding him that held a smile of obvious victory. "Now you can't see this coming, don't you? Iron tail!"

"Poison jab, straight up!" Calem shouted as he put his hand to the side.

"Toxic!" Toxicroak shouted as he strained against the steel type move for a second, only for him to not be able to resist due to gravity and fatigue, which caused a small explosion as Pikachu then was propelled back into the air.

"Yes!" Ash shouted as he then pointed forward. "Use THUNDERBOLT!"

"Pika… CHHUUUUUUUUUUUU!"

Toxicroak got up only to the see the electric beam come his way through the gleam of his eyes. " **BOOM!"** the battlefield was consumed in an explosion as Pikachu landed in Ash's trainer box with the green aura around him disappearing completely. Looking at Toxicroak, the referee knew it was over: "Toxicroak is unable to battle, Pikachu wins!"

" _And Toxicroak has finally gone down! What a play by Ash to get the berry at the right moment!"_

"Alright!" Ash shouted as he high fived Pikachu while the crowd erupted into the cheers and claps.

 **At the stands:**

"I was not expecting less from Pikachu," Brock said with a smile as he crossed his arms. "I still know that whatever is coming out will be a powerful one too."

"I know that Calem is going to have to force himself into battling away from the poisonous water for now," Shauna said. "That strategy has only worked for Toxicroak, so I now see that the battlefield is a very large hazard for any pokemon they can both use." Shauna then sighed as she looked at Calem and looked at the scoreboard, the jet black haired trainer was down one pokemon, but she knew he could bring it back, "Go Calem…" Shauna whispered to herself.

 **At the battlefield:**

'Amazing, even with Toxicroak's amazing strategy, I was not able to take down Ash's Pikachu,' Calem thought as he recalled his fallen poison type. 'I may have to go with something a little more menacing now, something to make Ash resort to a lot of power,' Calem thought as he then pulled out another pokeball and shot it forward. "Go Salamence!" The pokeball rose into the air and opened with a very strong flashing light that made the stands whisper among themselves as the large blue pseudo legendary from Hoenn emerged.

" _And Calem retreats to his Salamence, he has not used this pokemon yet either, so this is going to be interesting!"_

"RAWR!" Salamence called out as he stayed airborne above Calem with a steady flapping of his wings.

"Salamence, huh?" Ash smirked as he reached into his belt and threw a pokeball towards the field. "Let's show him what you can do Noivern!"

" _And Ash will attempt to take down this Salamence with Noivern!"_

"Vern!" Noivern shouted as he emerged into the battle once again with a powerful screech. The referee (who for some odd reason not wearing a hazmat suit from his position down at the battlefield) signaled to resume the battle and Ash was the first to make a move.

"Noivern, use boomburst!" Ash shouted as he put his hand out. The sound wave dragon flew around the Hoenn pseudo legendary and then made his ears glow white as he fired off the beam. Salamence maneuvered a little around the first back of sound, but then the second barrage hit him square on. "Noivern! Use sky attack!"

"Noi… VVVEEEEEERRRRNNN!" Noivern shouted in his celestial golden beam.

Calem gritted his teeth as he then pointed forward with his eyes gleaming from the sun as well, "Use dragon rush!"

"RAAAWWWR!" Salamence shouted as he made himself glow a blue aura that then slammed into the angelic move that was being utilized by the black bat. The collision caused some tension which then caused some sparks to shoot out as a shockwave that caused Calem and Ash to cover themselves with their hands. Salamence and Noivern then shot out chasing each other with their respective auras and the two trainers followed them very carefully not wanting to make a move.

Suddenly, the worst possible thing for Ash could happen when Noivern glew in a bright Inferno before then losing his aura that was about to slam into Salamence. The raven haired trainer and Pikachu saw this and knew exactly what had happened as they clenched their fists.

" _Noivern is burned! What a surprise for Ash!"_

 **At the stands:**

"Oh no! Noivern is burned, this is really bad for Ash," Clemont said with a worried tone of his voice.

"What?" Serena asked with worry as she kept Kapi close.

"From before," Clemont replied as he then replayed the scene in his head: **A closeup of the collision of Talonflame and Noivern portrays embers appearing from the feathers of Talonflame and touching Noivern's body.** "Talonflame's ability was flame body, because of the many collisions they had, Noivern ended up getting burned."

Mairin gritted her teeth as she heard this and clenched her teeth to then see Noivern get hit with a very strong thunder fang that crunched down on the ears of the sound wave dragon. Salamence then swung around and threw Noivern towards the ground.

"Dragon Rush!"

Everyone flinched as they saw Salamence make himself glow blue before slamming Noivern towards the ground with a large splash. As soon as they looked at Salamence flying gracefully on top of the arena, the referee was also heard through the microphone system: "Noivern is unable to battle, Salamence wins."

"Poor Noivern," Trevor said as he scratched his head. "That burn from Talonflame was unexpected."

"And here you think that Talonflame was a fall guy, he ended up being the main reason as to why Noivern went down," Tierno replied. "There is no way you should underestimate Calem's pokemon because they are definitely very powerful."

Serena looked at the scoreboard and saw how the battle was now even again as she hugged Kapi:

 **Ash:** _Noivern Sceptile (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball)_ Pikachu

 **Calem:** _Toxicroak Talonflame_ (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) **Salamence**

"Oh Ash," Serena whispered to herself as she looked at the battlefield to see Ash pulling out a pokeball. "Be careful out there."

 **At the battlefield:**

" _And Noivern has gone down, what will Ash do now?"_

"Noivern, return," Ash said as he recalled his fallen dragon type to see that the scoreboard had updated to show that Noivern was also out of the battle. "Take a good rest." Noivern was sucked back into red energy and went into his pokeball as the raven haired trainer then looked at the battlefield and the bubbles coming out from it. "I don't like this battlefield, let's win this next battle to change it…" Ash then reached into his belt and pulled out another pokeball. "Charizard, I choose you!"

"Gruaw!" The blazing fire type shouted as he appeared on top of the field and right in front of Salamence with his mega pendant shining brightly in the sun rays. The fire and flying type looked back at Ash and smiled. 'There is only one pokemon that I have that would enjoy a challenge like this one, Charizard can take on this Salamence!' Ash thought as he then smiled brightly.

" _And Charizard will be Ash's next choice, a battle of dragons if I do say so myself!"_

"Get ready for this Calem!" Ash exclaimed as he smiled and pumped his fist in front of himself. The bright sun from above making his eyes sparkle as he then propelled his arms to his sides: "Charizard use your best thunderpunch!"

Calem smirked as he saw this and pumped his fist as well, "I like your electricity Ash, this battle has already got my motor driving!" The jet black haired trainer then pointed forward and with a giant smile shouted: "Thunder fang!"

The scene slowed down to slow motion as Charizard and Salamence were about to collide, the fire and flying type swinging a fist while the other pokemon having large mandibles right in front of him. Both moves were crackling with electricity as they were about to collide.

Ash and Calem are then seen with their hands out next to their respective pokemon, this battle was just starting to get _electric_.

 **A/N: Will Ash settle the score? Or will Calem proceed to the finals? Find out next time!**

 **Alright, why did I make these electric jokes at the end of the chapter? Well, because I wanted the two trainers to have fun with electricity. Night is watching in the background with sparkles in his eyes because of this LOL!**

 **Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed part one. Get ready for part two as we get to see so many interesting things.**

 **This chapter was sooooooo fun to write, specially with the Toxicroak shenanigans going on. I do have to say that if you did read the battle word for word, you would have enjoyed this so much!**

 **Anyways, hope you guys enjoyed! Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**


	48. Chapter 48

**In case you missed last chapter:**

" _And Noivern has gone down, what will Ash do now?"_

"Noivern, return," Ash said as he recalled his fallen dragon type to see that the scoreboard had updated to show that Noivern was also out of the battle. "Take a good rest." Noivern was sucked back into red energy and went into his pokeball as the raven haired trainer then looked at the battlefield and the bubbles coming out from it. "I don't like this battlefield, let's win this next battle to change it…" Ash then reached into his belt and pulled out another pokeball. "Charizard, I choose you!"

"Gruaw!" The blazing shouted as he appeared on top of the field and right in front of Salamence with his mega pendant shining brightly in the sun rays. The fire and flying type looked back at Ash and smiled. 'There is only one pokemon that I have that would enjoy a challenge like this one, Charizard can take on this Salamence!' Ash thought as he then smiled brightly.

" _And Charizard will take this battle on, a battle of dragons if I do say so myself!"_

"Get ready for this Calem!" Ash exclaimed as he smiled and pumped his fist in front of himself. The bright sun from above making his eyes sparkle as he then propelled his arms to his sides: "Charizard use your best thunderpunch!"

Calem smirked as he saw this and pumped his fist as well, "I like your electricity Ash, this battle has already got my motor driving!" The jet black haired trainer then pointed forward and with a giant smile shouted: "Thunder fang!"

The scene slows to slow motion as Charizard and Salamence are about to collide, the fire and flying type swinging a fist while the other pokemon having large mandibles right in front of him. Both moves were crackling with electricity as they were about to collide.

Ash and Calem are then seen with their hands out next to their respective pokemon, this battle was just starting to get _electric_.

 **A/N: So, we are starting to get to the climax of this battle, which will resolve itself in this chapter.**

 **So much battling is about to happen, in fact, I am going to have to cut the author's note kind of short!**

 **I have been planning this chapter for a good while, I have constantly replayed it in my mind, so it is special that I can put what I have in my head into this document.**

 **So, I hope you guys either enjoy (or not) depending on the outcome!**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or** _ **Nothing Helps**_

Chapter 48- The promised rematch of two closest allies!

 **At the battlefield:**

"GRUAW!"

"RAWR!"

In slow motion, both pokemon are closing the gap as they both have their electric moves about to make contact. The light becomes darker as the two pokemon come closer which only exposes the lightning that is between the impact. Suddenly, the scene shifts out back to full coloration with an explosion in the middle of the field which then has Charizard and Salamence flying out of where they came from with electricity surging through their bodies. Calem though, he instantly put his hand out as he gritted his teeth, "Dragon rush!"

Ash noticed the action and threw his right hand to his side with a very violent manner as his eyes beamed in the sunlight, "Go in with dragon claw!" Both pokemon charged up their respective attacks and began to close the gap again over the poisoned battlefield that was constantly bringing bubbles up to where the two pokemon were battling and the stands constantly cheered knowing that this battle of dragons was not going end until both pokemon had given it all they had.

The two dragons collided with a fast motion, "RAAAAWWWWWRRR!" Salamence shouted as he pushed harder and made Charizard fall back a little. The fire type back flipped to then get hit with the same blue aura from the behind. Ash saw this and gasped as he noticed that the orange lizard's green scaly claws were gone.

" _Charizard had seemed to take the stronger part of the blow, how will Ash respond?"_

"Alright then," Ash said as he narrowed his eyes. Looking towards his target, the raven haired trainer redirected his vision towards the trees and remembered that there were berries on the canopy of those trees. "Charizard, I have an idea, how about we give it a try?" Ash asked as he pumped his fist at the infernal dragon in front of him.

"Gruaw!"

"Alright then Charizard," Ash smirked as he bent his leg in and pumped his fist with a bright smile on his face.

'There is that smile that tells me that I have to be careful,' Calem thought to himself as he returned the smile. 'I will just have to play the same game he is if I want to take down Charizard'. "Ash," The jet black haired trainer suddenly wiped a strand of hair away from his face. "I want to see what you have, come at me!"

"You bet!" Ash shouted as he pumped a fist in front of him before then pointing at the trees. "Charizard, fly into any of the trees and eat as many berries as you can!"

Calem smirked as he heard this and then craned his hand in front of himself before then spreading them out: "Salamence, you do the same thing!"

"Gruaw!"

"Rawr!"

"Pikapi?" Pikachu asked as he looked at his trainer. The Kanto native noticed this and kneeled down in front of the small electric rodent before then petting his head: "Don't worry, this is where Charizard and I come through."

Calem watched this motion and smiled as he looked down. 'He has such a strong bond with his pokemon, it is so amazing to battle someone with this power.' Calem thought as he looked at his watch with the keystone. 'I have never had a feeling like this in a long time when it cames to battling someone like this,' the jet black haired trainer then looked at the trees and a zoom into his eye showed that he was focused on the tree Salamence had just flown through. 'But I know that this battle is just about wrapped up, so I will not back down from this chance.'

"RAWR!" Salamence cried as he appeared in front of Charizard, who was looking at the former with a bright smirk.

"Gruaw," The two dragons smiled at each other before they both became enveloped in a colorful aura that surrounded them both. It was color red and it had an upward motion in the way that it traveled before then causing the two trainers themselves to smile.

" _Amazing, so it seems that both pokemon have increased their power by eating many berries at the same time! This was not expected!"_

"Fly!" Both trainers called out at the same time. Salamence and Charizard both flapped their wings as they then zoomed into the air with blinding speed. The stands cheered continuously as they witnessed Charizard and Salamence begin to speed at each other with flare blitz and dragon rush, both dragons causing a large explosion above the field before then zooming out over their trainers, which caused Ash and Calem to cover themselves with their hands as they gave commands to their pokemon:

"Steel wing!" Calem shouted as he looked up towards his blue and red dragon. The pokemon did not even blink as he instantly made his wings glow larger and brighter with a silver lust which caused Ash to put his hand out.

"Grab it!"

"Grauw!" Charizard shouted as he landed on the poisonous water below, which caused a blue aura to appear on the fire lizard that prevented him from feeling the effects of the poison as the other pokemon came in flying with a blinding speed towards the fire type. "GRUAW!" Charizard grunted as he put his two claws on the silver wings as he strained, legs digging into the water.

"Rawr!" Salamence could not keep going so he retreated and made his wings return back to its normal color as Ash took this time to strike again:

"Hit him towards the poison with dragon claw!"

"Gruaw!" Charizard shouted as he blinked behind and above Salamence. "GrrrruuuuuuAAAWWW!" The infernal dragon could not resist striking from behind with his green scaly claws which caused Salamence to tumble to the water and splash up the purple liquid. Charizard then flew into the air as Salamence shook himself out of the water.

"Rawr…" Salamence staggered, he had been overcome by a purple aura with bubbles coming from his mouth.

"Poison, NO!" Calem shouted as he looked at his dragon and flying type. "Get a lum berry from the trees!"

" _It seems that of all the berries Salamence ate, he did not have any to prevent poisoning! This is bad for Calem!"_

Salamence shot towards the trees with occasional purple bubbles coming from his mouth, but Ash knew better as he put his hand forward, "So Salamence did not get anti-toxication berry? Don't let him get to the trees, use flare blitz and fry them all!" Charizard smirked as he appeared next to Salamence, who was flying as well and then shot forward towards the trees and ignited himself into flames.

"No way!" Calem said in shock as he flinched seeing the trees get set on fire with the berries vaporizing into black soot and blowing into this air. Calem then gritted his teeth as he pointed forward and shouted: "Use hyper voice!"

"RRRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWRRRRRRRR!" Salamence shouted as he made his voice screech in a way that made Charizard stop on his tracks and try to cover his ears. This made Ash grit his teeth as he put an arm to his side before then pumping that arm and directing his other hand towards the ground:

"Don't you dare give up Charizard, dragon claw, straight through!"

" _And Ash seems to command a dragon claw against the hyper voice, will he even reach Salamence?"_

"Gruaw," Charizard muttered as he made the claws that he was using to cover his ears spike up the three pointed pair of green claws that were brighter shade of green than the dark grass of the swamp that surrounded the purple water. The infernal dragon then pushed forward with his wings and attempted to get through the powerful sound waves that were attempting to disorient him.

Calem then was shown having an agape face as he watched waiting for what was about to happen.

"Rawr…" Salamence suddenly stopped his attack as he felt the poison strike again and made him stagger with purple sparks appearing.

"GRUAW!" Charizard charged forward and delivered the powerful hit that left a green trail behind the pseudo legendary from Hoenn.

" _What a hit! Super Effective as well!"_

" **Splash!"** Everyone's attention turned to the Salamence that hit the water hard with a large splash. Calem gasped as he looked at the field with a very shocked look on his face to find that Salamence was on the ground completely immobile.

"Salamence is unable to battle," The referee declared as he raised hand and the cheers from the audience began to become more audible. "Charizard wins!"

" _And there you have it folks! Charizard has just come through with an amazing victory over Salamence!"_

"GRUAW!" Charizard roared as he landed behind Ash on the trainer's platform. "Alright Charizard! That was awesome!" The raven haired trainer praised as he petted the orange fire and flying lizard.

"Pika!"

'So strong,' Calem thought to himself as he smiled and recalled his fallen pokemon. 'I am having so much fun, I wonder how long it has been since I have lost the sense of time.' Calem then looked forward as he noticed that the battlefield that he had completely made a mess of with Toxicroak began to go down towards the dark pit below.

" _There will now be a field change because Calem is down to two pokemon!"_

 **At the stands:**

"Charizard was amazing!" Mairin called out as she looked at Chespie. "Did you see that?"

"I never expected the use of berries like that by Ash and Calem," Clemont said as he analyzed the two trainers, one seemingly reflecting to himself while the other one was talking to his two other pokemon with an amused face. "This battle has Ash at an advantage, but one must keep in mind that Calem still has a mega on his side."

Tierno and Trevor both looked at the field with smiles as the former spoke up, "Charizard has really proven himself to be Ash's elite when dealing with strong opponents!" Trevor then smirked. "I can't wait for Mega Charizard against Mega Gallade!"

"I agree, that would be so cool!" Tierno chimed in with a pumping of his fist.

Serena though, she looked at the two and then back at the field with a shake of her head and smiled, "It is going to be better, Mega Gallade has something stronger coming his way."

"What are you talking about?" Shauna asked her friend.

Serena shook her head as she petted Kapi's soft furry head, "Ash doesn't spoil surprises, that is all I am going to say."

 **At the battlefield:**

The new field then came up and stopped in front of both trainers. Analyzing the battlefield, the raven haired trainer saw that it was a large battle space, but the side closest to the scoreboard had a large cliff side that made the raven haired trainer analyze the consistency of the field: rock. 'Alright, the rest of this battle will just be straightforward, my strategy will have to be to keep the battle going with full blast.' Ash smiled as he pumped his fist with the bright sun light interacting with his fist, "Calem, let's give it all we got!"

Calem smiled as he saw this and looked down with his eyes closed. 'This… This is why I have been so hyped about battling you.' The jet black haired trainer then put his hand in his belt as he bobbed a pokeball in his hand. "You bet Ash," Calem replied.

" _The rest of the battle will be in a rock field with a mountain on it! This will surely be intense!"_

"Charizard, I am going to stick with you!" Ash exclaimed as he put his hand forward.

"Gruaw!" Charizard shouted as he flew into the air and then landed in front of the raven haired trainer with a large excited growl that made Calem smirk.

"Go! MANECTRIC!" Calem commanded as he threw a pokeball into the field. The red and white sphere spun in the air before it then opened into a flashing light that materialized into a blue and yellow dog that growled in front of Charizard.

"Mane…" Manectric growled as he stepped to the side and eyed the fire and flying type with the bright pendant with blue stone on his neck.

" _And Calem's fourth pokemon will be a Manectric!"_

 **At the stands:**

"So Calem has himself a Manectric," Brock said as he looked at the battlefield seeing the smaller electric dog-like pokemon facing off against the larger fire type that had his claws outstretched. "Calem has the advantage with this pokemon given that Charizard is a flying type."

Clemont and Serena nodded as Bonnie got out of her seat, "Go Ash! Go Calem! Battle with everything you guys have!"

"I wonder…" Tierno said as he looked over at the dog electric type as he noticed that none of the pokemon or trainers on the field were moving. "How will Calem plan to defeat Charizard if not even a Blastoise can take him out? I think Calem has something up his sleeve."

Professor Sycamore and Diantha both looked at the battle with excitement as the former looked at Charizard and then shifted his eyes to the Manectric. "Manectric is another pokemon that Calem has not revealed yet, I wonder what Ash will do to take it out?"

"That Manectric does seem powerful too," Diantha said as he narrowed her eyes. "Look at it's legs, they resemble the ones of a Jolteon." Looking closer, Professor Sycamore did notice the stature of the legs, almost like if they had been trained to be for a fast pokemon.

At one of the higher areas of the stadium, Night was overlooking the battle. He slumped his body against the wall behind him and smirked as he looked at the battle. "Look Jolteon, his Manectric seems to have taken on the same training we told him to take."

"Jolteon!" The electric spiky pokemon cried as he looked onto the field with an eager look on his face.

"You are right," Night replied as he narrowed his eyes. "This battle is not going to be over just yet, I can't wait to see what happens."

 **At the battlefield:**

The view circled around the rocky field as a view of the referee portrays that he resumed the battle. Ash looked at Charizard and noticed that he seemed slightly tired although he still had the red aura around him. 'Looks like Charizard is losing steam, I am going to have to make sure that I know what Manectric's strategy is before I try anything,' This was the main thought in the raven haired trainer's head as he looked towards the other trainer sporting a black jacket.

Calem threw his fist into the air in front of him and made the first command: "Thunder Wave!" manectric made a wave of electricity go forward before then surrounding Charizard with a wave of electricity that then made the large fire type fall back on the ground with electric sparks around him.

"Charizard, are you ok?"

"Gruaw…" Charizard replied as he slowly stood back up and back to his feet.

" _And a quick thunder wave now paralyzes Charizard, this can be bad for Ash and a great way for Calem to get the advantage!"_

"Go in with wild charge!" Calem ordered as he pumped his fist. Manectric made a large roar pierce the sky and the cheering crowd's volume as he made an electric aura that made a crackling sound before he then began to run in a zigzag pattern before going towards Charizard at blinding speed.

Ash went wide eyed as he saw this and put his hand out with the brightness of the sun making a brilliant shine from the raven haired trainer's clothes: "Counter it with flare blitz!" Charizard also made a blue fiery aura as he began to run forward and towards the electric pokemon that was coming at a faster pace. The gap sealed in Ash's side of the field and then caused an explosion as the two pokemon crossed each other which caused both Manectric and Charizard to stumble and roll along the ground. The raven haired trainer saw this as his turn to attack so he put his hand to the side, "Use dragon claw!"

Charizard jumped into the air and made his green claws glow before then using his wings to go down towards the ground. "GRUAW!" The fire type cried as he was about to engrave his claws into the electric dog that had just gotten back on his feet.

" _Here comes Charizard using his powerful dragon type attack!"_

"Dodge it!" Calem shouted out as the sun made a large reflection in his brown eyes.

"Mane!" Manectric shouted as he disappeared instantly with blinding speed which made Ash flinch.

"Gruaw?" Charizard asked himself as he then felt the pain from the ground he collided with: "Gruaw!" Charizard exclaimed in searing pain as he then felt the electricity around his body come back and cause terrible damage to him.

Manectric came back around and looked towards Charizard with an amused face as Calem then pumped his fist, "Take this hit Ash, thunderbolt!" Manectric shot the bolt of electricity forward and towards the fire type as it arced and crackled.

The Kanto native knew he had to avoid taking too much damage from the attack, so he came up with the best way he could in order to avoid the attack by closing his eyes and imagining something in his head: " **Bunnelby, strike the ground with double slap and make a dust cloud!"**. Ash then shot open his eyes and grabbed his cap as he pointed forward: "Charizard make a dust cloud by using thunderpunch on the battlefield!" Charizard did not even hesitate as he made his crackling fist go into the ground and deliver a substantial power to cause a cloud of dust to surround the fire lizard. Suddenly, the electric beam that was shot got completely dispersed and out of Ash's way, which made him smirk: "Take him on with seismic toss!"

"Mane?" Manectric asked in confusion as he watched Charizard emerge from the cloud of dust to then grab ahold of the electric type.

"What?" Calem asked in shock as he watched Charizard and clenched his fists seeing the fire type swing around the electric type. "Manectric!" The Electric type tumbled to the ground and landed with a large thud that made a cloud of dust go around him. "Manectric are you alright?" The jet black haired trainer asked as the dust settled.

" _What a counter attack from Ash, truly an impressive battle!"_

"Manectric!"

"Good," Calem responded as he looked ahead of the field towards Charizard and Ash while cutting out the cheers from the arena. The scene darkened as it showed Ash and his Charizard, the former being on his trainer's platform with a serious look on his face. 'They are so powerful together, even I can see that, but I know I can take down Charizard, despite it being Ash's ace throughout most of the league,' Calem thought to himself as he put his fist forward and the sunlight returned. "Manectric, go in with wild charge!"

"Manec…" Manectric cried as he made his electric aura come around him. "TTRRRRIIIICCC!" He shot out at immense power and speed, something that everyone was shocked to see as well.

The raven haired trainer knew there was no time to dodge, and this super effective attack could be devastating if it hit: "Charizard, block it with dragon claw!"

"Gruaw!" Charizard made his claws go green and larger as he then put them in front of his face.

"MANECTRIC!" Manectric collided with the dragon claw and pushed on with his electric aura, something that made him more determined than ever as he kept pushing.

Suddenly, electric sparks surrounded and hurt Charizard enough to make him stagger, which then caused the electric dog to push through and slam hard into Charizard. Ash gasped as he saw this and called out for his pokemon, "Charizard, get up!"

" _Uh oh, Charizard has taken a lot of damage, is this it?"_

"Now that he can't move, use thunderbolt!" Calem shouted with his shining brown eyes as he pointed forward. Manectric rebounded from Charizard's belly and made himself glow in electricity before then striking the ground with an electric beam as it zigzagged towards the fire type. Charizard's eyes gleamed yellow to the sight of the beam, but the fire type fell deeper into his knees as the electric sparks came back around him to immobilize further. " **ZAAAPP!"** The electricity billowed through the stadium as Manectric then fell in front of his trainer with a very defensive look on his face.

When the smoke cleared, Charizard was found in the ground unconscious, which made the ref raise his hand: "Charizard is unable to battle, Manectric wins!"

" _What power! And Charizard has gone down, this is truly going to be a challenge for Ash's lack of a mega evolution now that Charizard is down!"_

"Alright!" Calem shouted as he pumped his fists.

Ash sighed as he pulled out a pokeball with a smile, "Return, Charizard." The fire type who was on the ground then glowed red as he returned back to the pokeball of the raven haired trainer. "You were great Charizard, now take a good rest." Ash then turned to Calem and smiled, "Not bad, I was not expecting such a powerful strategy to get me there."

"Well it was all due to Manectric's speed," Calem replied as he crossed his arms and looked down with his eyes closed. "The way I trained Manectric was meant to rival even the fastest pokemon, what are you going to do in response?"

"This!" Ash shouted as he looked at the pokeball he was about to send out before then throwing it out into the field with a frisbee motion. "Come on out Goodra!"

The flashing light then materialized into a pokemon that had his head down with ears looking down, but then the large purple and white dragon type opened his eyes and looked forward with bright green eyes that held an amused expression: "Goodra!" The dragon type that came out of his pokeball shouted as he put on a defensive stance with his arms.

" _And Goodra comes out, probably a great time for him to redeem himself after that defeat against Hydreigon in the last battle, let's hope that Goodra can get back his momentum from his magnificent battle against Hunter!"_

"Goodra against my fast pokemon?" Calem asked himself as he shook his head, "Doesn't matter, fire blast!" Manectric pulled back his head and made a large fire type attack shoot forward with a five pronged technique, something that made Ash smirk.

"You know, being creative can sometimes make things beautiful," Ash sarcastically said as he rubbed hand under his nose clearly thinking about a certain honey blonde performer. "Use thunder and redirect that fireblast into the air!"

"DRA!" Goodra shouted as he shot forward the electric beam against the star shaped fire type attack. The two moves interacted, but instead of exploding, the two beams shot higher and higher into the sky before then shattering into a bright fiery flower with the filaments coming from the electricity. The whole stadium seemed to make sounds of watching in awe as Ash looked forward and noticed that someone had his attention particularly away from the battle.

" _What a beautiful display! Who knew that things would take this turn?"_

"Made you look! Use draco meteor!" Ash exclaimed as he threw a fist into the sky.

 **At the stands:**

"What a combination of moves," Serena muttered to herself as she watched in awe the beautiful flower disappear to then be replaced with an orb that shattered into many falling meteors. Serena took her focus out of the battle for a second and looked at her trusty electric type right in front of her and thought about Braixen. "What if Kapi and Braixen could pull that off?"

" **BOOM!"** Serena's attention returned to the battle, where she saw that Manectric was zigzagging through the falling meteors before then striking into Goodra with a powerful wild charge attack, something that Ash was expecting as he made Goodra grab ahold of Manectric with his ears.

"Now throw it up!" That echoed through the battlefield as Serena watched Goodra launch Manectric towards a falling meteor. The result: Manectric crumbled towards the ground with a lot of power.

"That hit," Brock said. "The two are trading evenly, I don't know how this battle will end, but I know that it will probably be very powerful."

Trevor sat up on his seat and looked towards the battlefield, "But if Charizard could not defeat Manectric, then how will Ash be able to stand a chance against him, or even worse, now that he doesn't have a mega evolution, how will Ash deal with Gallade?" Trevor then put a hand to his chin. "Is this battle already over?"

"No it isn't," Serena said, which attracted the attention from the other. "Ash may have lost Charizard, but keep in mind he has some other pokemon that are strong in his team as well. Goodra is one of them, maybe he could find a way to make Goodra defeat Manectric, but I know that this battle is still not over."

"I don't know who I am cheering for…" Tierno started. "But this battle better have an epic ending."

 **At the battlefield:**

"This battle is still not over," Calem declared as he put his hand out. "Manectric, give it everything you have and go around him with wild charge!" Manectric began to glow with electricity as he then shot forward and began to surround the dragon type. The purple and white pokemon looked around, his green eyes slowly following the surrounding electric type.

"What are you planning Calem?" Ash muttered to himself as he followed the movements of Manectric. His eyes then went to the dragon type he was commanding, something about his hands dripping a gooey slime then made him remember how sticky it was. 'That's it!' Ash then put his hand out and pumped his fist with the other with a bright smile. "Goodra, spin around and around like a top!"

"Goo…" Goodra's green eyes glowed brightly as he began to twirl around in circles trying to match the Manectric. Although not being able to catch up with the latter, Ash noticed that Goodra's arms were launching the goo go in many directions, which then began to slow down the electric type.

"What?" Calem asked himself as Manectric stopped performing his attack and stood in front of him. "What did you do?"

"The slime," Ash said with a smile. "You see," The raven haired trainer then put his hand palm up as if he was teaching something, "The slime that Goodra has is sticky, so all I did was make it get caught in the legs of Manectric."

"What?" Calem asked in disbelief as he looked at his electric type's legs. Sure enough, there were strings of slime around them and a bright shine in the legs. "No way!"

" _Amazing! And Ash's trump card ends up being Goodra's slime!"_

Ash smirked, "Be careful Calem, because now it is our turn again."

"Come at me then," Calem shouted as he put his hand forward. "Thunderbolt!"

"Goodra, we will finish this with one more hit, BIDE!" Ash shouted as he put his left arm to the side from a low angle view. His eyes gleaming with determination as the view shifted to Goodra, who nodded and clenched his fists ready for the oncoming electric attack.

"MANECTRIC!" The electric dog shouted as he shot the bolt forward and made it cross through the rocks before finally slamming onto the large white and purple squishy dragon. Goodra felt the electricity begin to interact with him and clenched his fists harder as he gritted his teeth, something that the large dragon had prepared for. Calem noticed that Goodra seemed to be taking damage, so he then ordered for Manectric to attempt to land a fire blast. "MANE!" The beam shot forward and then opened into five prongs that threatened to consume Goodra, who stayed still and braced himself.

"Come on… Endure it," Ash muttered as he clenched his fists at his sides.

"Goo.." Goodra squealed in pain as he fell back a little by an explosion that occurred in the middle of the field that involved an unguarded fire blast. "Goodra!" Goodra cried out as he looked back out into the field with a very serious look on his face and a blood red aura beginning to form around him.

"Manectric, wild charge!"

Manectric circled around Goodra (at a slower pace this time) and then made himself glow in electricity. "Mane!"

"Goodra!" The purple dragon staggered at getting hit from his left by the crackling tackle.

"Manectric!" Manectric ended up circling from behind and hitting Goodra again, this time making the larger dragon fall down to the ground with his hands touching the rocky surface, with a straining face and a very defeated stature. At the same time, Goodra had a very red aura around his body, it was filled with inner rage that made the entire stands go silent as to know what was about to happen.

"Manectric!" Calem called out to see his electric type beginning to pant harder and harder while slowing down in front of him. "Give him one more thunderbolt! Take him down with this!" Manectric hesitated a little, but then jumped into the air while charging up the electric beam that then shot out and began to zigzag across the ground before then hitting Goodra straight on.

" _Is Ash relying on pure luck to get him past this? This could end very devastatingly for Ash!"_

"Come on Goodra," Ash muttered as a view of the purple dragon's hands portrayed that he dug them into the rocks to prevent falling from the excruciating attack. Manectric, now more exhausted than ever, landed in front of Calem with a very slowed down and beat up posture. Something that made the raven haired trainer a little more relieved as he then noticed that Goodra was standing back up, but with his aura being extremely blood red, almost black.

" _Goodra is still holding on, but Manectric is starting to get tired from repeatedly attacking with wild charge, a move with recoil damage!"_

Calem narrowed his eyes and pointed forward, "Once again, circle him and use wild charge!"

Ash watched closely as Manectric made his glowing electric aura before running to be circling Goodra, something that the purple dragon watched as he clenched his fists trying to not let got go of the bide. The green eyes followed the blue and yellow dog like pokemon as he circled and ran around… Then Ash found the proper positioning as he noticed that Manectric was about to be in front of Goodra where the large cliff side was. As soon as the electric type was in position, Ash raised his hand: "Let's GO!"

"Gooo!" Goodra had his eyes gleaming as the white beam appeared in front of him. "DRRRRRRAAAAAAAA!" The entire stadium went quiet was they saw the white beam, larger than anyone has ever seen it before, consume the electric dog in front of him into a white abyss that made its way towards the façade of the cliff in an instant. " **BOOM!"** The explosion that rang out completely caused a large shockwave that made Calem cover his face with his hands while Ash did the same with his scarf waving tremendously. When the dust and smoke settled, everyone's eyes went to the purple dragon, who was standing proud, but now the question was:

" _Where is Manectric?"_

Everyone sweat dropped as they looked around for the electric pokemon, but then Calem and Ash were the first to spot the large hole in the cliff that was at least a meter deep. It could be seen in there that Manectric was not moving, except his chest rising and falling from breathing, and that made the referee call out the battle without much hesitation, "Manectric is unable to battle, Goodra wins!"

" _And there it is! There is no way any pokemon would have been able to take that hit straight on, might I add that it completely debilitated an entire section of the mountain!"_

The crowd once again erupted into cheers as Calem slowly recalled his fallen pokemon back into his pokeball. Looking at the scoreboard, Ash looked at how the battle was going, mostly in his favor:

 **Ash:** _Charizard Noivern Sceptile_ (pokeball) Pikachu **Goodra**

 **Calem:** _Manectric Salamence Toxicroak Talonflame_ (pokeball) (pokeball)

Looking at Goodra, Ash noticed that he was not doing so hot because of his large scratch marks still around his body from the previous battle, but he still called out to his pokemon: "Goodra, are you sure you can continue?"

Goodra looked back at Ash and smiled, "Goodra!"

"Alright then, Goodra, I am sticking with you!" Ash declared as he looked at the jet black haired trainer in front of him that had a black jacket on. It was clear of one thing: His last two pokemon were his strongest. 'Chesnaught and Gallade, how will I deal with this?' Ash asked himself as he looked forward.

" _Ash will stick with Goodra after quite an intense match with Manectric!"_

 **At the stands:**

"This seems like it will be a close battle," Tierno said as he looked forward. "Calem has the advantage in having a pokemon that can mega evolve, this means that if Chesnaught is strong enough, which he probably is, he can bring this entire battle to a close."

"I would not doubt Ash though," Clemont replied as he adjusted his glasses to make a glare appear. "Ash still has Goodra, a slightly hurt Pikachu, and Greninja still able to battle completely fresh, I would not count him out of this battle at all."

Mairin looked forward and sighed, "I hope that Ash still has something that can defeat that Gallade then, it will be hard without a mega evolved pokemon."

"Chespin…" Chespin replied as he looked forward with a slightly depressed expression.

 **At the battlefield:**

"Alright then," Calem said as he looked at the pokeball he had in his hand. "This will be our battle to win! Chesnaught, you are in charge!" the pokeball shot through the air and then opened up to reveal the large spiky Kalos starter that Calem had chosen. It landed across from Goodra and made a very large cry that made everyone at the stadium cheer.

" _And there is the valiant Chesnaught that represents Kalos' own Calem! This pokemon is one of Calem's main contenders and definitely his most trusted pokemon!"_

"So, you decided to go with Chesnaught, right?"

"Yup, and he is definitely going to be a powerful pokemon for you to deal with!" Calem replied as he looked forward. "Let me show you just how powerful we have become! Chesnaught!" The black jacket trainer called out as he pumped his fist, "Show him your wood hammer!"

"CHES!" Chesnaught shouted as he jumped into the air and made a green log for in his hands. "Chesnaught!" The grass and fighting type called out as he fell down with a swift motion and landed the large attack in Goodra's belly.

"What? He's so agile," Ash said as he looked forward.

" _Impressive mobility from Chesnaught, who would expect such a large pokemon to pack quite a speedy blow?"_

"Now take this rollout!"

"Naught!"

"Gooo!" Goodra squealed in pain as he felt the large rolling pokemon staggering him back. This made Ash grit his teeth as he noticed that Goodra was completely hurt as Chesnaught rolled back to be in front of Calem.

Ash smiled as he close his eyes and pointed forward, "Try this on for size! Use draco meteor!" Goodra charged up the large orange and golden sphere in his mouth that then shot upwards and towards the sky before it shattered into many meteors that began to fall around the battlefield. Ash smirked, but then flinched at what Calem then ordered.

"Nice going Ash, but we can deal with this," Calem said as he looked up and noticed that falling orbs of power that had a whistle sound as they fell. The jet black haired trainer pumped his fist as he called out his next move: "Chesnaught, use rollout and spiky shield at the same time!" The move combination began with the large juggernaut pokemon to curl into a ball and begin to roll, but then a green shield with spikes appeared that when touched by the meteors, protected Chesnaught from any damage. The green streak navigated throughout the rocky battlefield and was on its way towards Goodra, but knowing that the spiky shield was consistant made the raven haired trainer grit his teeth when he noticed that Goodra got hit hard and fell in front of him with a lot of dragging motion.

" _What an unexpected strategy! I have never seen such a combination of moves to get past a draco meteor!"_

"Goodra no!"

"Pin missile!"

"CHESNAUGHT!" the large pokemon cried as he made the needles fly out of his shell and penetrate through the air with whistling sounds as well. Ash went wide eyed as they hit Goodra and the next thing he knew, the large purple dragon slumped to the ground silently.

"Goodra is unable to battle," the referee declared as he raised his hand. "Chesnaught wins!" At that time, Chesnaught and Calem were both shown to be pumping their fist seeing the way things went for them as Ash recalled Goodra.

" _And Chesnaught has cleared past Goodra and evened out the score with ease, impressively without taking damage too, this is going to be a hard pokemon for Ash to defeat!"_

"Goodra, you were awesome," Ash said as he put the pokeball into his belt. "Take a good rest."

 **At the stands:**

"Two against two," Trevor sighed. "It is completely even again."

"I am so nervous," Shauna muttered as she looked at the battlefield to see Ash and Calem in a staredown.

"Chesnaught is Calem's starter, no doubt one of his most trusted pokemon," Tierno said as he then recalled the first day that they had set out on their journey. "Calem and Chesnaught had worked so hard on the first day, in fact they even were one of the main reasons as to why we were able to be successful during that pseudo legendary incident."

"If Ash wants to bright this back, he is going to need to be careful," Clemont then said. Bonnie and the others looked at him as they then turned their attention to the field. "Chesnaught took no damage, which means that Calem still has two fresh pokemon to battle with, while Ash only has one."

"Maybe… What if Pikachu holds up?" Serena asked herself as Kapi grew wide eyed and looked at the electric mouse that was next to the raven haired trainer. She grew even more excited to then see that Pikachu was tugging on Ash's pant leg.

 **At the battlefield:**

"Pikapi!" Ash turned around and noticed that Pikachu was tugging on his pant leg, which made him turn to him and kneel down in front of the electric mouse. "Pika Pikachu!" Pikachu cried with a prideful pose as he pumped his fist in front of Ash. The raven haired trainer smiled as he closed his eyes and stood back up to then open them with fire burning inside.

"Alright then Calem, this will be a battle between our starters," Ash declared as the jet black haired trainer smiled. The Kanto native knew it was time to say what Pikachu had been waiting to hear, so he put his hand forward and shouted his favorite words: "Pikachu! I choose you!"

"PIKA!" Pikachu shouted as he jumped over Ash and landed in the rock in front of him while collecting electricity on his cheeks. "Pika Pikachu!"

" _And Pikachu has come out to battle for Ash's side! This will truly be a battle of big against small, but we are definitely excited to see how this will turn out!"_

"We are going to start this with my favorite move!" Ash declared as Pikachu nodded with a determined smirk. "Pikachu use thunderbolt!"

"Pika…" Pikachu muttered as he began to charge up his cheeks to make an electric aura crackle around him as he jumped into the air. Calem and Chesnaught watched with smiles themselves, obviously amusement radiating more from the trainers than just the cheering crowd. "CHUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu exclaimed with his trademark cry as he launched the beam of electricity forward and towards the larger grass type.

"Pin missile, hit him directly!"

"Naught!" The five missiles shot out and went around the crackling bolt of electricity and the two attacks crossed each other without touching, but with dead accuracy towards their targets. Ash and Calem gritted their teeth as they watched their two pokemon get enveloped in a dust cloud after taking the attack head on. "Naught…" Chesnaught cried as he fell in front of Calem.

"Pika…" Pikachu grunted as he fell in front of Ash with a cloud of dust settling around him.

The two pokemon slowly got up with scratch marks around each other, and without taking his time, Ash went for the first move once again noticing that Pikachu began to walk forward. "Pikachu, slam him down with iron tail!" Pikachu ran a little faster as he jumped into the air and then made his bolt shaped tail glow white and stiffen as he then swung it around and was about to slam tail on against Chesnaught, who just as the iron tail came widened his eyes.

"Spiky shield!"

"Pika!" Pikachu got enveloped in a cloud of smoke as he soared in the air. The raven haired trainer went wide eyed as he saw his electric rodent fall in front of him in all four paws with green sparks surrounding him. "Pikachu, pika!" Pikachu exclaimed as he looked back at Ash.

From a side view of the Kanto native's face, he put a hand to his chin knowing that he was in trouble, "Spiky shield makes Pikachu take damage if it is a direct attack, what can I do?"

" _And Pikachu as just taken the damage from spiky shield, which causes any opponent that uses a head on attack take damage!"_

Ash's opponent looked at the electric rodent and then up at his trainer, "You will have to do so much more to defeat me and Chesnaught." Calem then pumped his fists and pointed forward with a smile, "Chesnaught go in with wood hammer!"

"Dodge it!" Ash shouted as he put a hand at his side.

"Naught!" Chesnaught shouted as he attempted to hit Pikachu with his glowing log.

"Pika…" Pikachu cried as he dodged left.

"Ches!" Hits left.

"Chu!" Dodges right.

"Ches… NAUGHT!" Slams his green log into Pikachu's abdomen which sends the smaller electric rodent flying.

"PIKA!" Pikachu squealed in pain as he flew through the air and landed in front of Ash with all four legs.

" _Wow what a hit! Chesnaught is really putting some work in for Calem!"_

The raven haired trainer pumped both of his fists at his sides as his eyes glowed with a reflection of the sun as he shouted his next command: "Thunderbolt!"

"Spiky shield!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he made his electricity trail behind him and then jumped into the air. Chesnaught put his hands in front of himself and began to make his shield appear, which glowed with bright green spikes that pointed forward. Ash watched as the larger pokemon had an opening from above, which made him go wide eyed and gasp. "CHUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu launched his electric bolt forward towards Chesnaught, but as soon as the electricity interacted with the shield, it dispersed to nothing.

" _Once again Ash's attack is blocked, this is a very powerful strategy that Calem is pulling off to hopefully get a two on one lead!"_

 **At the stands:**

"PICHU!" Kapi shouted from Serena's lap completely frustrated by how the battle was playing out. Serena could do nothing except hold Kapi with a little more grip knowing that she could go mad if Pikachu took such a devastating hit.

"This looks bad for Ash," Brock said as he crossed his arms. "He can't attack Chesnaught and he is at a huge disadvantage if Pikachu goes down."

"He's right," Clemont said with a very alarmed tone. "Ash can't get ahold of Chesnaught's strategy and in the end it is causing him to take more damage than usual."

"Chespin?" Chespie asked as he looked up at his redheaded trainer that was now gripping her harder than ever.

Mairin stayed silent as he muttered something under her breath, but it was clear that she was worried about Pikachu's state in the battle. Bonnie smiled at Mairin, "Mairin, cheer on for Ash, don't worry he has this under control." Mairin went a little wide eyed as she smiled back and looked back at the field while releasing a little bit of her grip on Chespie.

"This is going to be a close one," Trevor said. "But only if Ash finds anything out."

Tierno crossed his arms, "But by the looks of it, Calem has the upper hand."

 **At the battlefield:**

"Pikachu, we are going to do something crazy," Ash said as he pumped his fist to which Pikachu gave an unsure nod back. "Use quick attack and begin to run around the field!" Pikachu did not even blink as he began to run around the rocky ground and then made circles around the field, which were not really understood by Calem.

The jet black haired trainer smirked a little as he looked around and then put his hand forward, "Rollout!" Chesnaught got to work quickly as he contracted into a ball and began to roll around with a green glow to him and then started to follow around the electric mouse, who had a white trail behind him. The electric mouse looked very unsure and then called out to his trainer as he then took a turn and began to run with the giant cliff side behind him forward, but opposite to him, Chesnaught appeared and rolled towards him.

" _Here it comes, they are running towards each other!"_

Ash craned his hand and smiled as he then put his palm out in front of him, "Use iron tail and made a groove in the rocky surface!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he slammed his tail into the battlefield which caused a crack to appear on the ground which then propelled the electric mouse over and the large grass and fighting type to get launched into the air due to the groove acting like a ramp. Calem gritted his teeth as he then saw Chesnaught collide with the cliff side and start to take damage from trying to use a connecting move like that on a mountain side. "Pikachu!" Pikachu cheered as he looked back at the slowing down Chesnaught.

"Naught!" Chesnaught cried as he landed with his hand on the ground with smoke radiating from his body.

The raven haired trainer looked extremely amused as he pointed upwards. "Pikachu jump on top of Chesnaught!"

"Pika!"

"Spiky shield!" Calem exclaimed as he then had the blood drain from his face to notice that the juggernaut pokemon began to set up the shield only for it to not stop the electric mouse from jumping on Chesnaught from above. Seeing this, made the jet black haired trainer shout his next command with a lot of fear in his face: "Shake him off!"

Chesnaught began to shake, but Pikachu persistently held onto the spikes on the back of the grass type's spikes as Ash had the view enter his eyes as he exclaimed: "THUNDERBOLT!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUU!" The arcing sound happened as the electric current made Chesnaught go wide eyed and begin to struggle unable to get the parasitic electric mouse out of his back.

" _AMAZING This is really going to do damage! How can Calem get out of this one?"_

 **At the stands:**

"Will Pikachu be shaken off first, or will Chesnaught give in?" Trevor asked himself as he looked forward to see Chesnaught rolling around the battlefield clearly feeling the strength of the attack.

Serena held her ribbon as she clenched the fist that was around Kapi. Speaking of Kapi, the female Pichu was sweating hard as she watched the electric mouse struggle to hold onto the larger grass type.

 **At the battlefield:**

"Pin missile!" Chesnaught opened his eyes with concentration as the spikes on his back that Pikachu held onto began to glow white...

"Pika!" Pikachu cried in pain as Ash went wide eyed seeing the electric mouse get shot into the air, but looking down, The raven haired trainer saw his opportunity to strike with a powerful attack that could finish off Chesnaught.

" _Chesnaught seems to be too weak to move anymore! Is this really it?"_

"Pikachu use iron tail!" The silence of the stadium was then replaced with cheers as the electric mouse slammed his steel type move onto the head of the large juggernaut pokemon. The end result was Chesnaught with his head down completely unconscious and not moving.

"Chesnaught is unable to battle, which means that Pikachu wins!" The referee declared as the raven haired trainer pumped his fist. Looking at the scoreboard, Ash knew he had the advantage as he then noticed he had gotten Calem into a two on one situation:

 **Ash:** _Goodra Charizard Noivern Sceptile_ (pokeball) **Pikachu**

 **Calem:** _Chesnaught Manectric Salamence Toxicroak Talonflame_ (pokeball)

" _What a comeback! Who knew that this would have been such an amazing way for Ash to unexpectedly take the lead!"_

Calem pulled out a pokeball and made Chesnaught return to red energy and get sucked back into the red and white device before then putting that pokeball back into his belt. A closeup of the jet black haired trainer's belt showed how he then put the pokeball in his hand back into a slot before then going to the one that was the farthest back from all the other pokeballs. Calem then made the device enlarge and smirked as he threw it into the air in front of him. "We will never give up, Gallade, let's win this battle together!"

The pokeball shattered open before then emerging the bladed pokemon that then appeared in front of Pikachu with a flashing light. His blades crossed and his position very formal as he then uncrossed his arms and put on a defensive pose. "Gallade!" Gallade cried as he looked towards his opponents, his mega stone glowing in his dangling necklace.

" _And there it is, the Gallade that is still undefeated up to date!"_

 **At the stands:**

Many people looked excited as they saw Gallade appear in front of him with cheers that went through the entire crowd.

The group seemed excited, Serena, Kapi and Mairin were excited for Pikachu knocking out Chesnaught, but the others seemed very excited about Gallade finally being out and a potential mega evolution.

"So Gallade is next," Professor Sycamore remarked as he leaned forward in his seat. "No doubt, this match will decide everything, all Ash has to do is defeat Gallade."

Diantha looked at the professor and scrunched her shoulders, "With what? Ash has no mega evolution at all to battle him with."

"Don't underestimate Ash," Professor Sycamore replied with an amused smile. "If you do, it is a big mistake."

 **At the battlefield:**

Ash smirked as he looked forward and put his hand out: "Pikachu let's focus all of our power!"

"Pika!"

"Alright!" Ash shouted as he was shaking with excitement as the light that reflected from his eyes showed as he punched the air in front of him. "Pikachu use quick attack!" Pikachu began to run with a large amount of speed as he then had a trail of white coming out of him. Calem smirked as he saw the attack coming and did not order anything as Gallade got hit right in the chest.

"Ade!" Gallade staggered as he then fell in front of his trainer while enduring the attack well.

"Electric overdrive!"

Pikachu jumped into the air and made his electricity glow which caused the dark rain clouds to randomly appear above the stadium and make it begin to rain. Calem smirked as he then saw the water begin to drip around him that then got more aggressive and stronger. "CHUUUUU!" Calem looked up to see that the lightning bolts had encased Gallade.

" _And here comes that amazing move by Ash and his Pikachu!"_

'Here is comes,' Calem thought as he then saw his fighting and psychic type take the attack before then seeing that Pikachu was beginning to slam his fist against the ground. "Dodge it!" Gallade jumped into the air with his necklace dangling to the side over the large electric earth that caused dust to be picked up in front of the trainer with a black jacket. Ash went wide eyed as he saw the psychic type avoid the electric attack, but then became more frightened when he heard the attack Calem had ordered, "Use stone edge!"

"ADE!" Gallade shouted as he then hit the ground and made his blades fall into the ground. Ash expected the stones to go in a straight line, but he was shocked to see that the rocks went out in two directions that then made a pinsir about to close in Pikachu.

"Dodge it!"

"Pika!" Pikachu cried in pain not being able to avoid the attack and landing in front of Ash with a thud without moving, his body constantly getting wet from the rain.

"Pikachu no!"

The referee raised his hand, making the entire crowd go into cheers. "Pikachu is unable to battle, Gallade wins!"

" _And Pikachu is down! This is now a one on one battle!"_

 **At the stands:**

"One against one, Ash is in a huge disadvantage now," Tierno said as he crossed his arms. Shauna and Trevor both nodded agreeing with the statement. Mairin kept Chespie closed as Serena did the same to a depressed looking Kapi.

"Kapi," Serena said as she petted her electric mouse and watched Ash pick up Pikachu and begin to return with him towards his trainer box. "Ash can do this, don't worry." Serena then sighed as she whispered under her breath, "Ash, good luck…"

"Pichu…" Kapi sighed as she looked at the field.

Brock, Bonnie and Clemont knew that Greninja was coming, something that was going to bring them a flashback to what had happened in the battle against Wulfric, which truly meant that things were about to take an interesting turn. On the other hand, Mairin was stressed out about the battle, she clenched her fists because she was wanting Ash to win so badly, almost like if she and Serena did not want the raven haired trainer to fall into an endless loop of losing at the most vital moments.

 **At the battlefield:**

"Pikachu, rest here, ok?" Ash said as he set down his electric mouse in a safe place near the tunnel behind him completely ignoring the cheers and the celebrating duo in front of him. Pikachu looked up at the raven haired trainer, whose hair was wet from the rain, and smiled as he slumped against the tunnel wall. Ash then walked away leaving Pikachu from where he was looking towards his trainer, staring at his back as he walked towards the trainer platform and stood there taking the water from above.

"Pikachu, pikapi," Pikachu muttered as a sign of good luck as he looked at Ash reach into his belt and pull out a pokeball.

"So… I knew it would come down to this," Ash muttered as he then pulled out the pokeball. He did not care that his entire body was wet, but he knew that his true power would come from this pokemon. "Greninja… I CHOOSE YOU!" The raven haired trainer then pulled back his hand as he flinged the pokeball into the rocks for it to flash brightly.

The frog ninja pokemon emerged in the rain with his arms crossed with a hidden smirk under his large pink scarf tongue that resembled his trainer's blue scarf. "NINJA!" Greninja cried as he looked forward with a serious look on his face while his pink eyes glared with the raindrops that reflected the lights from the hexagonal stadium that kept the entire stadium lit up.

" _Ash is planning to win this with Greninja, only really having won against a weakened Incineroar and a weakened Darmanitan with the type advantage, and up to date, his worst performing pokemon in this entire conference. It would take a miracle for Ash to get out of this battle without the type advantage!"_

The crowd whispered amongst themselves as Ash just smirked and looked at Greninja, "Don't worry about them, they don't know anything about us!"

"Ninja!" The sinister water and dark type called out as he pumped his fist and looked forward at the opponent.

"I wouldn't underestimate your Greninja ever Ash, but I know I can win this," Calem declared as he then noticed that the referee ordered for the battle to resume, which made the jet black haired trainer throw a fist forward while causing water to be splashed forward as well: "Leaf blade!" Gallade made his blades glow green as he then charged forward towards the water type.

The raven haired trainer narrowed his eyes as he then adjusted his view to be through Greninja's eyes. "DODGE IT!" Ash called out to the water type as he arched his back.

"Ninja!" Greninja cried as he mimicked his trainer's action. The scene slowed down as the frog ninja was shown to look upwards to see the bladed pokemon go above him with green blades that splashed the rain drops. Greninja then began to end his limbo after Gallade has passed as the scene returned back to its normal speed and the rain began to fall at a fast pace once more.

" _What a dodge! I have never seen anything like it!"_

Ash then reached towards his legs and crossed his arms to then uncross them as if throwing something as he shouted: "water shuriken!" Greninja did the same and unleashed ninja stars that then shot forward and towards the bladed pokemon. Calem also ordered for his fighting type to dodge, which caused Greninja's attack to then miss and fall in front of the raven haired trainer because Greninja and Gallade switched sides.

"Psycho cut!"

"Water shuriken once more!"

Wanting to get back to their trainers, the two pokemon jumped into the air and crossed next to each other for the scene to go in slow motion once again and show the two pokemon staring at each other for their small time together before the scene turned back to normal speed and both pokemon turned their bodies to see each other head on. As soon as that happened, Gallade made his blades glow pink before shooting forward a couple of blades. Greninja reached for his shuriken markings and once again shot them out, only for the pink blades and the watery ninja stars to collide and cause smoke to appear in the rainy air above the rocky field.

"Aqua blade!" Ash shouted while extending his arm.

"Leaf blade!" Calem retaliated with his fist out.

"GreNINJA!"

"GallADE!"

The green blade and the dark blue kunai interacted in the middle of the field with sparks glowing from the collision of the attack which sent a shockwave out towards both trainers who were gritting their teeth. Calem had his clothes shake as Ash scarf and jacket were the main things that got affected.

" _What a battle Greninja can actually match Gallade's power! This seems like two rivals in pokemon and trainers alike!"_

 **At the stands:**

"This is so intense," Brock said as he looked forward. "How are they both so strong?"

Serena smirked, "It is their rivalry, and if Ash uses that to his advantage, he can win."

"This is going to be an intense battle, I can already tell," Clemont said as he noticed that both trainers stopped attacking as they noticed the rain begin to clear. "But the rain is over, so if Greninja did have an advantage, then not anymore…"

 **At the battlefield:**

" _And the rain has cleared, how will this affect the battle?"_

The battlefield around Calem and Ash then began to glow blue as it had both of the trainers in a staredown. The jet black haired trainer pumped his fist as he looked forward and smiled. 'Ash, this battle, it is so intense. I have never had so much fun battling someone in such a while… However, if I ever am going to prove that I am the best rival I could be, I am going to have to defeat you right now,' Calem then narrowed his eyes as the battlefield returned to normal. 'So, I must go with all of my strength!' The Kalos native did not even hesitate to reach for his watch as he touched the stone within. "Gallade, let's go with all of our power!" The keystone and the mega stone both began to glow as the bladed pokemon also glew white as the prongs began to interact. "MEGA EVOLVE!"

"GALLADE!" The psychic and fighting type cried as he began to grow in shape, his legs becoming larger and the cape glowing around him. The glowing then stopped and the mega evolution symbol appeared in front of Gallade as he made one more battle cry that made Ash smirk.

 **One OK Rock- Nothing Helps (Nightcore)**

 **The drums kick in.** The same blue effect appeared, but this time, it showed the side of Ash's face. The raven haired trainer narrowed his eyes which caused the edges to blacken out. 'Calem, this battle has been loads of fun… Although I want to say a lot more, I can only do it through a battle.' _No nothing helps. We won't stop now we did it on our own. Nobody else, it's because of you i'm standing here with you…_

The view returns to normal and features Calem pumping his fist as he makes the first attack: "Stone edge!" _AAAAAHHHH YOW!_ **Guitar kicks in.** Gallade waved his cape around as he punched the ground and then caused the entire area of the field nearest to him to spawn an undodgeable nightmare of rocks that began to charge towards Greninja, who was standing in front of Ash with a powerful stance.

 _Gimme some more…_

 _Gimme some more…_

 **Vocals are replaced with a guitar solo to which Ash and Greninja are in synch with:** Ash and Greninja both pump their fists as the view switches between the two to then portray both pokemon and trainer alike making a battle cry as they pump their fists at their sides. **Guitar solo begins to end.** A torrent of water shoots up around Greninja and the entire scene gets enveloped in a white light…

 _Oh yeah OK i've got bad days_ **Shows a Frogadier being defeated by a Gallade**

 _So caught up in my mind and i'm_ **Shows a Frogadier being defeated by a Gardevoir**

 _Not really sure of who I am_ **Shows a Frogadier being defeated by an Abomasnow**

 _And nothing seems to go my way at all_ **Shows a raven haired boy getting pelted with snowballs and a honey blonde girl slapping his cheek**

Scene returned to normal as it portrayed Greninja dodging the stone edge with a torrent of water streaking through his body before he jumped into the air with a lot of power, cheers from the crowd and the announcer going bonkers over the transformation is happening as the torrent then turned into a pair of butterfly wings. _Then I hit the stage and remember, why i'm here._ Wings then solidified into a large shuriken as Greninja is now shown with red lightning bolt symbols on the side of his face along with spiky black tufts and a blue tongue. The chest resembled the jacket that Ash was wearing. _I'll be the voice of those who don't have words, and never forget…_ Greninja then opens his bright red eyes which showed a crimson flash to then have Ash's face appear as a mirage image. _The road… BACK!_

 _No nothing helps!_

" **MIZU SHURIKEN!"** Ash exclaimed as he reached back to grab the shuriken on his back. The view repeats three times from different angles as it portrays the giant shuriken flying at blinding speed through the entire battlefield.

 _We won't stop now we did it on our own!_

Calem had a slightly shocked face as he put his hand out: "Psycho cut!"

"GallADE!" Gallade shouted as he made his blades glow purple before then shooting a slightly bigger purple blade right at the giant water shuriken, which caused an explosion to ring out mid field, Gallade's signature move barely able to stop the ninja star from advancing any more.

 _Nobody else, it's because of you, we finally came this far! (came this far!)_

Ash then retracted his fist as he narrowed his eyes. "Aerial ace!" Greninja rushed through the smoke and through it made his right fist glow light blue. Ash mimicked the hitting motion as the water type uppercutted Gallade's jawline and then slammed his glowing leg into the caped pokemon's chest.

 _On and on another song to write are wrongs that I!_

"Gallade, are you alright?" Calem asked as he watched his pokemon stand up in front of him. "Alright then, go in for a leaf blade!"

"Gallade!" Gallade cried as he crossed his legs in front of his body before making them stretch out into green swords. "Ade, ade ade!" Gallade exclaimed as he tried to hit Greninja with the grass type attack. The water type avoided the first two swipes, but the third one hit Greninja right on the chest which made the water type skid across the rocky ground making the Kanto native wince in pain.

 _Tell me who else?_

Calem's eyes glew with the sunlight as he pushed through the view of the screen with his fist out, "Now use stone edge!" Ash regained his composure as he then went wide eyed seeing the incoming attack that was headed his way. Gallade's rocks barraged through the solid surface and went towards the water type threatening to consume him.

"Double team!"

 _It is thanks to all of you that I could find my own way!_ "Gren! Gren! Gren!" The copies split off in all directions that caused the stones to begin to follow around the copies. This made the raven haired trainer grit his teeth before then deciding to make his best move:

"Greninja!" Ash shouted as he formed fists in front of his face as if he was grabbing something. "Use aqua blade and slice through incoming rocks!" Greninja and Ash both began to swing the dark blue kunai blades with similar patterns as the copies began to get destroyed by the stones that were shooting out of the ground. The real frog ninja though, leaped up over the rocks and then began to swing his sword wildly which caught the attention of the jet black haired trainer.

 _Any longer and i'll know, each and every day every show..._

Calem put his hand out as he made his next command: "Use leaf blade!"

 _Gotta give my best with innocence, it could all be taken away in any minute..._

"ADE!"

"NINJA!"

 **Guitar kicks back in.** _There are things I always remember… Forever..._

Both pokemon met in the middle of the field with their respective blades and engaged in a stalemate, but then Greninja tried to land a right side swipe, that was blocked by Gallade. The bladed pokemon then extended his green sword forward trying to get a good hit on the ninja's chest, but Greninja stepped back to then put his blade in the way of another incoming swipe from the left this time. The crowd then cheered at a strong volume when both pokemon engaged in a complete dominance for power, Gallade and Greninja were both shown to have blue and green glows radiating towards their faces due to the colors of the moves being used. _Oh no how can I walk this rocky road?_ Gallade then kicks Greninja in the abdomen which pushes the water type back to be in front of his trainer, who grabbed his stomach in pain. _And never regret… And never know…_

 _I JUST HAVE TO GO!_

 _No nothing helps!_ Ash orders for Greninja to run around the rocky ground. The frog ninja pokemon agrees and is shown increasing his speed as he goes and goes before then becoming hard to see. _We won't stop now we did it on our own!_ Calem then catches sight of Greninja right in front of the cliff and points forward: "Right there! Close combat!" Gallade made all of his limbs glow white before he shot out like a bullet towards the frog. Ash and Greninja though, they shared a small glance as the psychic and fighting type began to slam extremely fast punches and kicks into the water type and drilling him into the side of the cliff, it was as if the bladed pokemon was punching at least 500 times a second, it was so fast. _Nobody else, it's because of you we finally came this far!_ As soon as the drilling ended, a startled Gallade looks around to see that he was hitting nothing but air. Calem gasped as he saw that and went wide eyed, "Was that just an after image of Greninja?" His answer was proven right when the frog ninja pokemon appeared in front of Ash completely unharmed as he skidded to a stop. _On and on another song, to write the wrongs that I tell me who else._ "How clever, LEAF BLADE!"

"Gall… ADE!" Greninja did not even have time to dodge as the bladed pokemon made a cross with his grass sword and uncrossed his arms to then make a large cross that slammed into the synchro evolved pokemon. Ash flinched as he grabbed his arms in pain.

 _It's thanks to all of you..._

"Ninja!" Greninja cried in pain as he mimicked his trainer's pose and fell to his knees.

 _That I could find my own way in this MMMAAAAAAAAAAAZZZZZEEEEEEE!_ The screen echoes as it is shown from Greninja's point of view a black and white colored blurry view of Gallade standing in front of him with another leaf blade prepared. Suddenly, Ash's voice echoed through the Greninja's ears: "AQUA BLADE!"

 _I GET WHAT YOU GET WHAT YOU WANT!_

The point of view switches back to color and completely focuses as a blue webbed limb appears holding a dark blue kunai to shoot forward towards Gallade. **Guitar solo plays!** View zooms out to show Greninja and Gallade approaching each other, the frog ninja pokemon being more aggressive this time with attempting to slash the bladed fighting and psychic type. **Every single strum of the guitar is a collision between Greninja's aqua blade against a blocking leaf blade.** "GRENINJA!" shouted as he engaged his two blades on Gallade's two green ones.

"GAAALLLLLAAADDDEEE!"

Both pokemon cause a large shockwave as they fall in front of their trainers with their backs on the ground. Ash-Greninja and Mega Gallade both got up, to their feet just about instantly as they then began to walk towards each other slowly: _I'm by myself, stuck inside my throat the words they won't come out, oh what the hell, why don't I just leave, give up and, let it all go away…_

 _But then I see your face and remember, why i'm here…_

Both pokemon begin to rush at each other, both trainers gritting their teeth ready to call out their next commands: "Use double team and follow up with water shuriken!" _No nothing helps, we won't stop right now, we did it on our own!_ Greninja split off into his many copies of himself as Calem pumped his fist:

"Psycho cut on all of them!"

 _Nobody else, it's because of you we finally came this far! (Came this far!)_ Greninja grabbed his shuriken and in slow motion launched in forward towards Gallade who was now running with a command to counter the attack.

"Gallade!" Gallade shouted as he made his blade glow pink and begin to shoot pink blades that began to destroy all of the copies swiftly while countering the water shurikens coming his way, leaving a cloud of smoke in the middle of the battlefield.

 _Tell me who else?_

Calem then had his eyes reflecting the sunlight as he extended his arm: "Gallade use leaf blade!"

"Water shuriken!" Ash retaliated as he pretended to grab the shuriken on his back. Greninja did the same and he and Gallade began trading blows, the gladed pokemon used two green swords against the one four pointed shuriken. _Will someday come and take my place and the story goes on!_ Ash-Greninja and Mega Gallade interlock each other's weapons which caused a shockwave that caused Ash's scarf to wave while causing Calem's black jacket to get blown as well.

 _All what I can do for you!_

"Calem!" Ash shouted which got his opponent's attention. The raven haired trainer pointed upwards to then reveal that Greninja was in the air. Ash then smiled as he touched his hat and smiled while looking down with his eyes closed. He then looked up and a glare from his eyes shined brightly as he pumped both of his fists. "Get ready, because I am coming at you with all of our power!" The raven haired trainer then went for his back with both of his hands. "WATER SHURIKEN!"

 _All what you will want me to!_

Calem smirked as he pumped both of his fists and then threw both of his hands at his sides. "Let's go with everything we have Gallade, COUNTER IT WITH SUPER PSYCHO CUT!"

 _All what you can see me through!_

"Gren…" Greninja shouted as he grabbed his shuriken from his back and made his fins on his head begin to glow more red than ever. "NINJA!" Greninja shouted as he made his water shuriken glow to a blue color, but to be at least eight times larger than any shuriken he had ever launched. The cheering crowd could barely handle the excitement as they witnessed Greninja pull the shuriken back with his right hand and fire it straight at Gallade. "GRENINJA!"

 _Will someday come!_

"Gall... " Gallade made his pink glowing blades form a psycho cut to charge up in front of him. The size constantly getting bigger and bigger until it was the same size that could rival the water shuriken. "Gall… ADE!" Gallade cried as he then fired off the pink blade through the air to counter the just as large shuriken.

 _THE STORY GOES!_

The two attacks collide in a stalemate in the middle of the field which caused a large shock wave to radiate to both sides as Calem looked up in awe not knowing what will happen.

 _NO!_

" **IIIICCCCKKKEEEEEEEEEE!"** Ash shouted as he screamed with a terrifyingly powerful white aura that radiated from behind. __

 _WAY!_

 _NO ONE MAKES YOU DAY!_

" **KKKKKOOOUUUUGGGGGAAAAAA!"** Greninja exclaimed as he also had the same aura as Ash. __

 _NO WAY!_

The water shuriken in the stalemate then grew twice as large and began to glow red which made everyone gasp in shock, stands and Calem himself who now had the blood rush out of his face.

 _AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!_

Everyone saw the psycho cut break apart as then the large blood red shuriken pierced through the air…

 **The last strum of the guitar of the song plays the explosion that radiated from the arena as a giant blue hemisphere that then shattered with a large boom.**

The scene then cut out with static like sounds…

 **A/N: …**

 **I actually did it… Sorry if it took more than expected to come out, I was so busy!**

 **Alright guys, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, the result is hidden for now, but what happens next will have to be uncovered in the next chapter because this chapter is already on its way to 14k words!**

 **Just a quick tip, some things in bold during the last song were supposed to tell you how you should perceive the battle and the music. Some things such as the first limbo dodge by Greninja and the Gallade after image close combat are inspired by Saitama vs Genos in** _ **One Punch Man**_ **. If you want to see what I was seeing, then go check it out for yourself! The song and structure of the battle was also based on** _ **Intrepid**_ **, a Minecraft PVP montage by Huahwi.**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**

 **P.S.: Anyone that wants some inspiration for an Ash-Greninja AMV, there you go...**


	49. Chapter 49

**At the stands:**

" **BOOM!"** The entire stadium was quiet, but Serena knew that someone had definitely prevailed during the battle. Her expression was serious and with confidence as she held Kapi in her hands. Everyone other than the honey blonde had their mouths agape watching the ginormous blue hemisphere shatter into an amazing shockwave that echoed throughout the entire arena. Mairin kept a tight hold on Chespie, she had been shocked at the end of the battle clearly not expecting anything that happened.

Professor Sycamore and Diantha also had shocked expressions covering their faces as they saw the dust beginning to settle in the primarily destroyed rocky battlefield. Neither of them could comprehend anything, from the Ash-Greninja transformation to even the enormous shuriken and psycho cut collision that had just occurred in front of them.

From a distance, Ashura kept a good look at the battle. He was sure that at the last second he saw the giant red shuriken prevail and cause the enormous explosion that was just witnessed. But sure enough, he had not expected his own son to be so in synch with his pokemon in a way that made Greninja also appear to look a little like him.

 **At the battlefield:**

Ash and Calem both looked towards the battlefield with serious expressions as they waited for the smoke to completely clear and portray the result. Slowly but surely, the view became more visible, and both trainers could now get a good view of what had happened:

"Ade…" Gallade muttered as he was on the ground losing his mega evolution form and glowing to revert back to his normal form. The bladed pokemon did not even have any energy to even stay up for just a bit longer because of how direct he was to receive the entire blow from the potent water type attack.

The entire stadium was quiet as the referee raised his hand and pointed it towards Ash, "Gallade is unable to battle." At that very second, Greninja landed from the air with a swift and quick motion that left him in a pridal position in front of the raven haired trainer, who had a smile on his face. "This means that the win goes to Ash from Lumiose City!" The stands immediately burst into cheers as the scoreboard then changed to show that Ash had won his battle with the words "winner" bellow his face.

" _What a battle! Ash and his mysterious Greninja somehow managed to defeat the monster that was the undefeatable Gallade! And that transformation was magnificent!"_

 **At the stands:**

"Marvelous!" Professor Sycamore remarked as he clapped his hands. "Truly a beautiful display for all of us to see!"

Diantha smiled towards the battlefield and sighed, "Yes, it truly is quite a surprise to see how in synch Ash and his Greninja were to even be able to transform like that." Diantha then looked onto the field: "That Greninja has come a long way since the last time I battled it, I would not be surprised if it gave Gardevoir and I a better battle soon."

"Oh man Calem," Shauna sighed as she smiled. "He truly did put up an amazing battle, congratulations to Ash though, his battling was amazing!"

"Congratulations Ash!" Tierno and Trevor shouted as they looked forward.

"Ches pin!"

"De ne ne!"

Bonnie and Mairin jumped out of their seats and began to exclaim complements towards the raven haired trainer in the battle field as Brock crossed his arms with a bright smile in his face, "To know he made it to the finals. On his first try too." The tanned skin man then pumped his fist: "That is how you win a battle!"

Clemont looked at Brock and nodded, "I agree, I would have never thought that Ash's battling would even get him this far, maybe he will even win this entire league conference if he can stand a chance against the Satoshi guy!"

Serena smiled as a side view of her face once again portrayed a slight blush. Kapi seemed to be very excited as she jumped on top of Serena's red hat and began to jump around with excitement that the honey blonde would later remark could rival the entire cheering arena. "Yes Ash!" Serena shouted as she kept her composure with clenching her fists, she was very excited indeed.

Ashura smirked as he looked back at a tunnel that was next to him and began to walk through towards the light at the other end. The next day he would have it, his long desired battle against his own son.

 **At the battlefield:**

Ash walked onto the rocky battlefield and stood next to Greninja. The Kanto native noticed that Pikachu had followed him out into the battlefield, so he smiled brightly to then close his eyes and look up. As that happened, Greninja began to glow blue as water splashed into the ground and created a small puddle under Greninja's feet which shined with the sun's rays and signaled that Greninja was back to his normal form. The raven haired trainer then noticed that Calem was walking towards him with Gallade next to him, holding the bladed pokemon by the shoulders. "Ash, that battle was a whole lot of fun, thank you," The jet black haired trainer said with a genuine smile.

The raven haired trainer smiled back and adjusted his cap, "No Calem, thank _you_ , this battle was the one that I was looking forward to the whole time, and I am so happy that we got to have this." Ash then extended his hand, which Calem did not hesitate as the two engaged in a very friendly handshake.

" _We had an amazing day of battles today! Tomorrow, stay tuned for the finals, Ash against Satoshi! Nobody will want to miss this! I bid everyone farewell and to all a good rest of the evening!"_

 **A/N: So yea, Ash did end up victorious at the end of last chapter. I do want to clarify that the next chapter will be the first part of the finals, which I am also making a three parter like Ash vs Damian (It is the finals, so I have to make it the most epic battle despite the outcome!)**

 **Anyways, another break chapter, like you guys have been probably dying to see a little more Amour in these chapters, then this chapter will have some of it, but I promise you that I will also do something else next chapter so that you guys do not feel like I am putting Serena in the stands to be cheering on Ash the whole battle like usual xD.**

 **So, Ash vs Ashura in the finals, this will be interesting. Since I am making this strive a little far away from the anime, nobody should have expected another Ash vs Alain! In fact, looking back at Ash's entire portrayal in this league, the only other person that he battled that was in here and the anime was Astrid, who was not even portrayed the same way as the anime LOL! It was this: Astrid, Remo, Trevor, and then a bunch of OCs, so yea, this was a very different league than ever.**

 **Anyways, this arc has around a couple more chapters next, and keep in mind that I am writing these very words at the same time that you guys are reading Ash's opening match: The sweep of Sceptile against Astrid. So yea, I hope you guys are enjoying that as of now!**

 **Hope you enjoy!**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 49- A finale on it's way! The preparation for the biggest challenge yet!

 **Melemele Island (Alola):**

The room was quiet. It was a pokemon center, and it was primarily empty, except for the background noise of Nurse Joy, who was taking care of pokemon on the other side of the door. It was the middle of the night and the room was like a typical hospital room: a bed with a bedside table, flowers around the bed, sphygmomanometers and stethoscopes lying around, and of course it was a nice and comfortable room.

It seemed to be scarce of life, but it was the contrary of that, there was a teenaged girl with bright pale skin, and short teal hair that was in the bed, she was wearing a hospital gown and her chest was slowly rising and falling. Suddenly, the girl's eyelids began to move as she then slowly opened her eyes: bright and aquamarine in color. Looking around, the teal haired girl noticed where she was and muttered something to herself before attempting to get out of bed.

"Urgh," The girl winced as she felt something push against the left side of her chest. She looked under her shirt to notice that the area had bandages around it, almost as if she had come right out of surgery. "Why am I in a hospital bed?" The girl asked as she sat up on the side of her bed, trying to ignore the ache she had before then hopping to the ground, her feet lightly pressing against the tiled floor. "Glaceon? Lilligant?" She asked as she made her way towards the door. "Hello?"

Nurse Joy from where she was working heard the sounds coming from the lobby and thought that it was a person waiting for her, so she grabbed a tray that contained a stethoscope and a thermometer in case she needed to begin taking vital signs of any pokemon. Opening the door, Nurse Joy stepped into the counter to then notice the girl looking around as if looking for any sign of civilization. "Nurse Joy, where is everyone, why am I here?" The girl suddenly asked a wide eyed Nurse Joy that was trying to comprehend who was in front of her.

"Li-Lillie…" Nurse Joy's jaw dropped followed by a large clang from the sound of the tray hitting the tiled floor.

 **At Lumiose City with Ash:**

Ash and the others had a great time after the battle. Calem, Shauna, Trevor, and Tierno all joined with Ash, Clemont, Brock, Bonnie, Mairin and Serena for a nice picnic in one of the outskirts of the walkway. Shortly after though, Calem, Shauna, Trevor and Tierno went to their hotel room to prepare for the next day. Similarly, Brock, Bonnie, Mairin, and Clemont decided to go back to the hotel due to the sun beginning to set.

Bonnie asked Clemont of she and Mairin could have a sleepover with Brock and him for the night, to which the young inventor replied with a yes thus leaving Serena and Ash alone at the Pokemon center: "Ash," Nurse Joy said as she gave the raven haired trainer five pokeballs from a tray. "Good luck in the finals, I wish you the best you luck!" The nurse exclaimed with a very powerful voice as she her fists.

Ash smiled at the nurse and nodded his head, he was nervous, yes, but being his father the person he was facing was what had him the most alarmed: The raven haired trainer had never expected to go up against him much less in the finals of such a large tournament. Serena, who was behind Ash, noticed the eerie silence that the Kanto native was giving off. The young performer did not believe it was normal, especially since he had not been this quiet since going against Damian… But this is different, the past could come to haunt the raven haired trainer and the Kalosian girl knew that her crush would have to go through so much just to face his own father.

The two left the Pokemon center somewhat quiet as Serena then sighed and looked at Ash, "Ash, I am going to go to my room and prepare for tomorrow as well, please don't be up so late."

"I won't," the Kanto native tried as he felt himself slightly mesmerized by the way that the honey blonde's hair glowed and dangled in the slight breeze with the sunset behind her. "I am going to have a prep talk, but most importantly, I am going to prepare myself emotionally." Serena nodded at this and began to head off… Leaving Ash and Pikachu alone with each other. "Pikachu, let's do something fun, alright?" Ash proposed with a smile.

"PIKA!" Pikachu replied as he pumped his fist to see the raven haired trainer begin to make his way down the walkway that then peered towards the large skyline of Lumiose City. The large Prism Tower radiating a bright light that illuminated the city as the duo began to walk towards the city.

After several minutes of walking, Ash reached the city, and smiled as he reached into his belt and pulled out the five pokeballs he had on his belt. Releasing all of the pokemon from their pokeballs -which attracted the attention of passerbys- Ash pumped his fist as he looked at the team of pokemon he had, Pikachu having jumped from Ash's shoulder to put himself next to the others. "Alright guys, tomorrow is our big day, but since we are all rested up, let's have some fun!"

The pokemon gave off a battle cry as Ash then looked at them individually and smirked, "Let's win tomorrow!"

"NINJA!"

"GRUAW!"

"TILE!"

"VERN!"

"DRA!"

"PIKA!"

With that, Ash ran into the city and began to get chased by his pokemon, three running next to him, two flying, and one amazingly hopping like a kangaroo with a monstrous speed that surprised many and made the earth shake as he hit the ground. Looking around, Ash saw a large field where all his pokemon passed by him to get to: Greninja and Sceptile rushing forward with Pikachu not far behind. The raven haired trainer's entire attire then shook to the breeze caused by Charizard and Noivern flying overhead, only to knocked to the ground by Goodra's hopping, which made the Kanto native completely sweatdrop.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Ash cried out as he got back up and put his cap on to go play with his pokemon, all who were beginning to enjoy a game of tag on the grass. People stared, but it did not matter to Ash as he was just having fun with his best friends in the entire world.

 **At a battlefield close to the league stadium:**

"Alright," Ashura said as he looked at his team and smirked. "Tomorrow is our big battle, so for now, I need you all to take a good rest." Pulling out his five pokeballs, Ashura recalled an Aegislash followed by a Zoroark and then recalling a bipedal pokemon, and two flying types, one larger than the other thus leaving just Pika outside of his pokeball. The electric mouse crawled up the shoulder of the other man as he then looked at his own wrists.

On his left wrist, Ashura had a bracelet that contained a shining stone that was glimmering in the moonlight. On his right wrist, the Kanto native took a look at his bracelet that had a crystal on it. It also glistened on the moonlight and was yellow in color. Ashura would later note that it had a shape that was like a Pikachu's tail with the image of a lightning bolt engraved within. "Pikachu," Pika said as he looked down at the wrists of Ashura, specially at the one to the right.

"Yes, I am planning on using it tomorrow," Ashura replied as he looked down and smirked under his cloak. "He will have a lot to use against me, so I better be prepared to battle him with everything I have… This battle will surely be one that I have been itching to have for a while…"

"This is a battle that will decide the fate of the relationship with my son…"

 **With Serena:**

The honey blonde girl tossed and turned in bed continuously. She was alone in bed, Mairin and Bonnie were sleeping in Brock and Clemont's room and Serena had spent the last couple of hours alone. "Oh man, I guess I better check to make sure that Ash is here," Serena whispered to herself as she got up from the bed and walked towards the door. Deciding she would not disturb, the honey blonde walked out to see that the door to the room of the raven haired trainer was open. Looking in, she noticed Pikachu on Ash's bed with the Kanto native seemingly gone.

The sheets to Ash's bed were messed up which indicated that he had probably left before. Not touching the door, Serena, who was still in her nightwear, walked towards the elevator and made it go down to the lobby. After she left the moving car, she looked around and found a clock displaying that it was a little past midnight. The eerie silence of the lobby did not disturb though as the young performer left the hotel to find herself in the empty walkway.

Deciding to walk forward, Serena did not know where she was going… That is until she saw the stadium in front of her. Out of curiosity, the honey blonde walked into the large hexagonal complex, maneuvering through the complex hexagonal hallways. Because it was late at night, the lights were off, but Serena had enough light to lightly see in the dark… In fact, her blue eyes sparkled in the dark atmosphere as she rounded a corner to see a stairway that was meant to lead to one of the two large dugouts.

Walking up the stairs, Serena could see the darkness beginning to change into the light of the moon that was brightly towering over the arena. The soft sound of her night slippers hitting the floor was not something that disturbed as she stepped into the trainer's platform and looked around and the unlit stadium. 'This is what it is like to battle here' Serena thought as she then noticed that the arena in front of her that should be a gap that fell to the ground actually was not a gap, in fact, in front of her was an actually battlefield: A forest.

She thought it was bizarre for there to be a forest field right in front of her, in fact, she did not even know that there was another specially since the battle between Ash and Damian ended up having Hydreigon destroy the entire forest.

The honey blonde was a little hesitant at first, but she then stepped into the field and began to walk forward. The trees were somewhat large as they had a canopy that allowed for a covering of the sky above. Walking forward, Serena found herself in a clearing that had no trees. In fact, it was circular and above there was a beautiful sight of the moon and stars. The Kalosian girl's attention was then brought to the person lying on his back and looking straight up at the stars with his night clothes on.

Serena went a little wide eyed as she saw who was in front of him, and on instinct she opened her mouth: "A-Ash?"

 **With Ash a little earlier:**

"Alright guys, return," The Kanto native called out as he made his pokemon materialize back into the red and white devices they were from. , Pikachu, Goodra, Sceptile, and Greninja had fallen asleep on the grass and Charizard was so drowsy that he could barely stay awake. The only one that was awake and active as Noivern, but it was logical since the sound wave dragon is supposed to be nocturnal. Still, he decided it was best to rest up everyone. "Pikachu, come on," Ash said as he lifted his electric mouse into his arms.

"Pika…" the little rodent whispered as he stayed asleep in the arms of the raven haired trainer. " **BOOM!"** Ash's attention was brought to a practice field next to the pokemon center he was passing to see Night training with Jolteon and Decidueye. The latter had shot a spirit shackle that was countered by the former's purple sphere of ghost energy. The two then stopped battling as Ash noticed that Night was talking to them, something about "being prepared", but the raven haired trainer ignored it as he walked up towards the pathway that passed through the quiet buildings.

Looking back at Prism Tower, Ash envisioned himself jumping off the tower with Pikachu and a Froakie as there were many pseudo legendary pokemon causing havoc. The Kanto native smiled as he then looked around clearly noticing the peaceful nature of the city, but then replaced the large city with a calm and peaceful village that he once called home: Pallet Town.

Ash shook his head as he then looked up at the stadium, which was getting larger as he approached it while entering the trainer's village. It was big, he had to admit that, but he kind of felt like he needed to be one with the stadium… It was where he was going to either win or lose tomorrow, and he knew that his father would not be an easy opponent.

The thoughts had returned…

Ash walked into the hotel and got up to his room to then see that his room was still closed. Opening it with the key, the raven haired trainer walked up to the bed and put down the electric mouse in the bed. Ash then sighed as he looked out the door and closed it before he changed into his night clothes and set the cap and scarf down. After finding himself comfortable, Ash jumped into bed to then find himself unable to fall asleep.

"Thanks melatonin," Ash whispered as he sat up in the side of the bed while rubbing his eyes. He knew it was late, but maybe taking a walk was not such a bad idea. Getting up and heading out the door, he did not even bother to close the door since he knew he would be back soon.

After exiting the hotel, Ash walked straight to see the stadium in front of him. Feeling like he wanted to relax, the raven haired trainer walked into the open stadium and descended the stairs that went into the control room. Noticing the door was open, he walked in and looked at the carousel of battlefields lined up, a forest conveniently on the next battlefield. Ash was hesitant at first, but he then pressed a button which made the stadium began to lift up towards the battle area above.

Seeing he had time, the raven haired trainer jumped on the battlefield before it was too far away from the ground and hung onto a tree as the battlefield picked up speed and then slowed down to be in the position where the pokemon would battle. Ash took a deep breath as he then noticed that there was an open clearing, to which he looked up to see a beautiful view of the stars and the moon above. The raven haired trainer lied down on the grass and smiled as he looked up. It was quiet, and serene…

That thought…

It lead him back to the honey blonde girl that he had been feeling weird about lately. Sure, they had known each other after they first met in childhood, but this feeling was something that he had never found himself experiencing. Just thinking about it made a chilling sensation ripple through his body as he took a deep breath and looked at the stars above.

'One day…' Ash thought as he reached up with his hand and grasped the stars. 'I will reach my goal, but first I have to win here tomorrow, this will be my big break!'

Ash then set his hand down to hear a little bit of rustling from behind him. It was a light sound, but it did not bother the raven haired trainer one bit as he looked up at the stars with his hands at his sides. The rustling then got louder, and eventually, a new voice rippled through the air:

"A-Ash?"

"Huh?" Ash asked as he turned around to see the honey blonde girl he was just thinking about standing there, dressed in her pajamas, with a confused look on her face. For a second, he could not even stop looking at her slightly waving hair and her sapphiric blue eyes that shined brightly. "Oh, uh, I was just here… thinking, want to look at the stars with me?" The raven haired trainer added the last part while putting a sheepish hand behind his head. The young performer nodded slowly and then walked up to Ash with the intent of lying down.

"Ash, what are you doing up this late?" Serena asked as she looked at the stars above. She pieces together some constellations that could be seen in the clear sky, but she was more worried about her crush who was lying next to her.

"I-I uh… I just wanted to enjoy the night sky…"

The honey blonde sighed as she looked to her right to see the raven haired trainer looking up at the sky, his auburn eyes shining brightly as he looked up at just the stars. "You can tell me anything, you know that, right?"

"Yeah…"

Serena turned back and looked at the sky and then pointed upwards, "Ash, you see that cluster of stars over there?" The raven haired trainer slowly nodded. "That is the big dipper, and right there," Serena said as she pointed a little more to the right. "That is the baby dipper!"

Ash chuckled a little as he looked at the two, "Hehe, looks nice although I never actually knew that you knew a lot about this stuff."

"Well," Serena smiled. "My mom taught me a lot of this stuff after… Well, she said that she was taught everything by my father."

"Did you know your father?" Ash asked.

Serena put on a sad frown and regretfully responded: "No… He left when I was little, top little to remember. Mom also told me I had a brother, but the thing is that I have no clue who it is, he left with my dad apparently, and that is all I know."

Ash looked over at the honey blonde and smiled as he put his hand on top of hers, "Don't worry, you will figure things out sooner or later."

Serena blushed at the action, but she was glad that it was dark because then Ash would have seen it. The honey blonde haired girl then put a worried face as she looked to her crush remembering something. "Ash, are you prepared for the battle tomorrow?"

"No…" Ash coldly said.

"If you don't mind me asking, why not?" Serena asked.

Ash frowned as he then saw Serena turn her eyes to meet his. Something about that gave him strength and determination, it was something that he was not expecting. The raven haired trainer then smiled as he said, "Well, the battle is against… _My dad_."

Serena tried not to recoil at the thought. She had not expected it to be him of all people. The young performer then smiled lightly and said, "What if he joined the league to tell you something? Trust in him during your battle Ash."

"But Serena," The raven haired trainer responded with a chill being sent down his spine. "What if… What if he wants to…"

"Ash he won't do that!" Serena snapped out of frustration. Ash recoiled seeing his friend like that, but then Serena went wide eyed and looked at the grass below her apologetically. "Sorry, I mean, I think he won't do anything with you, he just wants a battle… To speak to you."

Ash looked at Serena and had his mouth go agape. "I-I never thought of it that way… Sorry for acting like an idiot."

"Ash, come on, I understand what you are going through," Serena said as she then looked up at the sky again. The silence being a dominant sound among them both. "I know you will win tomorrow, you got this far, and you can pull it off."

"Are you sure?"

"As long as you don't give up until the very end!"

Ash chuckled at Serena's last remark and looked at her with a smile. "Yeah, you know what, I won't give up at all… never."

"That's my Ash," Serena said in a serene voice that Ash found curious as to what it meant. The young performer turned red as the capillaries formed streaks of red that splotched onto her face with a color that resembled roses. "I-I mean, you won't give up and that is why you will win!"

The Kanto native chuckled as he rubbed under his nose and looked up at the sky. "You know, thanks so much for helping me get the confidence to battle tomorrow… but I am still wondering about the future," the raven haired trainer began as he narrowed his eyes. "What will I do to become a pokemon master? What will my next adventure be like? Who will be the next Pokemon I capture?"

Serena chuckled at this and looked up as well, "I am thinking the same thing, although." The honey blonde then chuckled as she looked over at the raven haired trainer to her right. "I can see you catching another unique pokemon, maybe one that has an _axe on his head_. Maybe a cute one."

"Where did you get that idea from?"

"Nowhere," Serena replied as she covered her mouth to giggle. "Just making it up."

"Alright Serena, let's go to sleep, I am getting tired and definitely need to be rested for tomorrow," Ash said as she stood up and offered a hand to pick up the female in front of her.

Serena took the hand with a blush and was pulled up a little too hard, which ended up with them falling into a hug like position. The honey blonde blushed as Ash pulled away with a slight laugh, "I pull you up too hard Serena, twice and counting!" Serena chuckled as Ash then pointed forward and said: "let's fix up this battlefield before heading down to the hotel, that way we won't be in trouble for when everyone comes down tomorrow." Serena nodded and the two began to go in the direction of the dugouts and do what they needed to do before resting up for the next day.

 **The next day:**

" **SWOOOSH!"** Jets shot through the top of the hexagonal stadium with people pouring in to find seats. Hovering above the stadium were news helicopters, all of them had reporters hanging from the inside with microphones and a camera. All of them covering the finals of the Kalos League that was about to happen.

The scene then shifted to the group that was sitting in the stands of the stadium already. They were waiting for the stadium to get completely filled up as the cheers began to engulf everyone. Bonnie then noticed something was off as she turned to Mairin, who was with Chespie next to her and asked, "Where is Serena?"

The redhead shrugged her shoulders as Calem and Shauna both looked around, "I saw her with us before, but she just said she would be right back before we got to our seats," Clemont implied as he put a hand to his glasses which caused a glare.

"She better hurry," Brock remarked as he looked around. "The seats are starting to fill up really fast."

"There is no way this isn't going to be such a televised battle," Tierno said. "We were lucky to get seats because we were early."

"Right, and the amount of famous people watching this battle is going to be tremendous," Trevor said as he looked at the battlefield in front of him. The scoreboard had the face of Ash next to six pokeballs and the hidden mysterious cloaked man "Satoshi" also next to six pokeballs:

 **Ash:** (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) **(pokeball)**

 **Satoshi:** (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) **(pokeball)**

"I'm here!" Everyone turned their heads to see a Serena, who was grasping her ribbon as she panted heavily from running. Her face was also red, which seemed odd because it was more red than usual.

"Serena!" Mairin and Bonnie chanted as they looked at the honey blonde.

The young performer sat next to Shauna and Bonnie as she then grasped her ribbon with a determined look on her face. The breeze made her hair wave a little, and the sun was making her eyes gleam in a powerful way.

Serena then looked down and shadowed her eyes in her fedora as her blush had not gone away, a side view of her face showing she had a smirk curved in her visage.

On a room that overlooked the battlefield, the scene shifted to portray a man with a black and gray suit, known for his lion like and orange colored hair that dangled around his face. The man put a large smirk as he had his hands behind his back before he sit down on a chair that let him have a look at the two dugouts that lead to a large gap in between.

Underneath the scoreboard, Professor Sycamore and Diantha sat in their seats as they looked towards the field with interest and obviously with a large smile in their faces as they saw the battlefield.

The scene then shifted to a room with three people, the elite four minus Malva, all of them looking at the television with a smile on their faces as they were ready to face the most important battle of Kalos.

The scene then alternated between all of the gym leaders: all of them had their pokemon with them while sitting in front of the television set. All of them waiting to see the two trainers begin to make their way towards the battlefield.

Going back to the field, Night stood looking down at the field near one of the tunnels. He saw a metal bar and scooted up to it to get a closer look of the battlefield. Jolteon was also near him, the electric type having a sudden urge to cover his ears thanks to the powerful sound of the stands filled with people cheering.

At the other side of the stadium, Malva was looking at a camera with a microphone in hand, clearly performing an analysis of the battle as she then turned around and looked at the possibilities for a battlefield.

" _Ladies and Gentlemen… Boys and girls… Be prepared for the climax of the entire Kalos League!"_

The cheers escalated to the sound of the announcer as he continued to talk:

" _This matchup of Ash against Satoshi is one that is clearly not to be missed!"_

At that same time, fireworks rippled through the stadium, sparkling and bursting into a millennial of colors that were visible even in the daylight. At the same time, a box filled with the regional birds from every region were released into the sky, all of them attracting attention as they flew off into the fireworks or the beautiful cloudless sky that was going to be cloaking the battle that was about to take place.

 **With Ash:**

The sounds became more compact and muffled as the stands started to cheer for the raven haired trainer's name and the name of "Satoshi". The raven haired trainer was consumed in the darkness at the top of the stairs with the beaming attire he had shining dimly from the light of the tunnel that was approaching. Ash reached into his pocket and felt a soft cloth fabric lying there. A cloth that gave him power as he knew he could do this… He would face his father and not give up until his last pokemon fainted.

Pikachu was also seen on his shoulder as a view from behind and below Ash looked upwards towards the entire body of the raven haired trainer, the light blue scarf shaking madly.

"It's time…"

"Pikachu…"

That is all that was heard above the muffled cheers as the figure of the raven haired trainer began to take steps forward.

 **A/N: And so it begins. The battle of all battles as one would call it xD.**

 **Remember that this will be a three part battle, so be prepared for some extensive reading.**

 **Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this final chapter before things start to get action packed…**

 **Anyways, remember to R and R and I will see you guys next time!**


	50. Chapter 50

**At the entrance to the tunnel:**

Ash was standing there on his own, the hexagonal hallway was bright and the sounds from the stadium were packing at full blast which were muffled sounds to the raven haired trainer that was standing right in front of the stairs. The stairs lead to a dark corridor that would then hold the light to the outside, where he would have his battle against his father… The last battle of the tournament.

Ash took a deep breath as he looked down to see Pikachu next to him, he noticed the electric mouse had a determined look on his face, one that definitely portrayed just how he was ready to battle along side his teammates just to win this battle. The Kanto native then reached down towards his belt and counted the pokeballs: All six pokeballs were there (counting Pikachu's) which meant that he had everything he needed to win…

Yet something still made him feel unsure of himself.

Ash stood there looking with a blank expression towards the stairs with a pensive tone, something that Pikachu noticed as he looked up at his trainer with a puzzled expression. The electric rodent was expecting something more of like a tightening of the fingerless gloves to then tap his foot once on the ground, but then again, that was not happening, at least not this time.

Ash's ears then heard an unexpected angelical voice from his left which made him turn around:

"Ash!" She shouted, running with a very tired look and sinking to her knees in front of the raven haired trainer trying to catch her breath.

The Kanto native went wide eyed as he looked down at the person that had just come for him, "Serena, what are you doing here? You should be with the others-"

"Ash, I know you might be lacking a little bit of confidence right now," The honey blonde replied which made the raven haired trainer go wide eyed and also made Pikachu cock his head with curiosity. Serena then looked up with a determined expression, her blue eyes gleaming brightly with the light surrounding the two trainers. "Here," Serena said as she pulled something out of her pocket…

The handkerchief.

She reached out to Ash and put it in his hand. The raven haired trainer looked down at the white piece of fabric and studied it carefully, it was well maintained, just as good as when he had first given it to Serena back at the years ago. "S-Serena, this is the-"

"Yes…" Serena replied with a smile before then turning around and sighing. "Look, I promised myself that I would do as much as I could to get you to the top, so I am trying to do that for you right now with the handkerchief."

"Serena…" Ash said with awe as he watched the honey blonde begin to walk away… "Why?"

Hearing this, Serena stopped in her tracks and turned around while looking down with her fedora shadowing her eyes.

"Ash…" She said in a very quiet tone, only audible for the raven haired trainer.

"Huh?"

" _Here is why I am doing this_ ," Serena said as she began to walk towards the raven haired trainer. Ash recoiled a little and he went wide eyed as he saw the honey blonde getting to an extremely intimate proximity to him.

 _A view of the feet of both trainers shows a pair of brown boots going on their tippy toes in the direction of a pair of red and black shoes._

Serena pulled away with her face completely crimson red, her smile could not have been any brighter. "See you after the battle Ash," The honey blonde replied with a very shy tone as she turned around and began to walk away. "Next time I see you, I want to be talking to the Champion of the Kalos League," Serena said with a more confident tone before walking off.

The raven haired trainer could not comprehend what he had just experienced. One second he was talking with his friend, the next she absolutely blew his mind. His eyes sparkled as he watched the honey blonde walk away and his feet felt a little numb. He then knew what he was feeling at that moment, the moment he knew his heart was palpitating for her. Ash then looked down and smiled as he turned back around to the stairs which were in front of him while simultaneously putting the handkerchief in his pocket.

"Pika Pikachu?" Pikachu asked knowingly as he perched himself on Ash's shoulder.

The raven haired trainer looked at the electric mouse through the corner of his eyes and then closed his eyes to say the next thing: "Keep your thought to yourself buddy, I can't let that distract me right now."

"Pikachu," Pikachu agreed with a pumped fist as he looked forward.

"You're right, it did feel good Pikachu," Ash admitted as he adjusted his hat. "Now I know what I have been feeling ever since I danced with her at the dance party." The raven haired trainer then put his foot on the steps and began to climb, the sounds of the stadium getting louder and louder by each step that Ash took. "Let's worry about everything later, right now, we need to win this battle."

"PIKACHU!"

"Right!" Ash exclaimed as he reached the top of the steps and stopped in his tracks as he looked forward towards the light that was going to have to consume him into the large and powerful stadium that he knew was packed to the very teeth.

"Pikachu?"

"Wait," Ash replied as he felt the piece of fabric in his pocket before then then grabbing his hat with both hands and turning it to one side before adjusting it forward again.

"I want to be…" Ash muttered as he took a step.

"The very best…" he muttered again as he took another step forward.

"Like no one ever was…" Ash then whispered as he began to walk forward, having flashbacks of so many things that happened during his entire journey flash in front of him, the gym battles, his pokemon, his friends, the growth of his pokemon and increasing potential, to finally ending with his thought being lead to what Serena had just done to him a couple of minutes before.

"It's time…"

"Pikachu."

Ash then found himself stepping into the bright light that was followed by the announcement of his name and eruption of cheers from the stands:

" _Ash!"_

 **A/N: NOBODY saw it coming, I am guessing LOL! Yes, I had it planned in my head for so long as to how I was going to make Amour canon, so I did it. Originally, I was going to make the power go out and Serena would step forward with Ash feeling something touch his lips, but I decided to take it the more casual and ambiguous way so that the imagination as to how it happened can kick in.**

 **Ok, now, will I make things spicy? Yes, but since they are beginning to love each other, I am going to keep them as amateurs in expressing love towards each other.**

 **Anyways, the first part of the battle is about to begin, and yes, this is a different battle than we are used to seeing, so I am hoping I can write it well!**

 **Hope you guys enjoy!**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

Chapter 50- A new way of battle! The father against the son!

 **At the stands:**

"Ash against the person that has only lost one pokemon during the entire league? I am getting kind of uneasy about this…" This was all Bonnie said as she clenched her fists. Mairin held Chespie in her lap, she too was feeling mixed emotions about the raven haired trainer and his opponent being so potentially powerful.

Clemont adjusted his glasses as he looked at the battlefield and began to make remarks: "To be honest, Ash had a very complicated line of matchups throughout the entire league too… Hunter only really used some of his pokemon, but he stuck with Eevee. Hau was even more like the Satoshi guy as he only used Incineroar, and even Damian relied a lot of his power on his Hydreigon." The lemon blonde inventor then looked forward at the battlefield noticing that the stands were completely filled and preparations for the battle were beginning. "Still, I can't help but feel nervous about Satoshi, he has only shown an Aegislash with eight moves and a Pikachu that could take down a Mega Swampert after it defeated the same Darkrai that took down five of Seth's pokemon."

Everyone nodded their heads at this, but Serena looked very confident in herself: "Don't worry, Ash will find a way, I know he will!" At that very moment a pokeball opened on the honey blonde's lap which revealed Kapi, who looked excited for the battle. "Alright Kapi, you can watch," the young performer told the restless female Pichu.

With Professor Sycamore and Diantha, the two looked down at the large gap and began to make predictions. "Is it really possible for Ash to even overcome some of Satoshi's pokemon?"

"I think he could do something amazing like he always does," Professor Sycamore replied as he looked down at the arena and noticed that he cheers were getting louder and more vivid by the second.

 **At Serena's house:**

Grace was preparing breakfast as she heard that the television was beginning to get loud and intense. "Fletchling, Fletch!" A Fletchling cried as he went towards the kitchen and signaled for the brunette to follow him.

"What is it Fletchling?" Grace asked as she finished breakfast and took a plate of eggs and bacon towards the couch in the living room that was situated right in front of the television, which was displaying the Kalos League Finals. "The finals huh? Well, I heard that Ash is in it, so why not watch it? If he wins, then my little girl might marry a champion when she gets older," Grace snickered. "You know, that does not sound like a bad idea after all."

 **With Ash:**

" _Ash!"_

" _Satoshi!"_

The raven haired trainer heard his name announced along with his father's nickname. He did not care anymore that he was battling his father as he began to walk through the light to then see the enormous hexagon themed stadium. The sun shined brightly and Ash noticed his scarf wave a little as the breeze blew through the stadium as he reached his battle box. Stepping on the trainer's platform, Ash noticed that Pikachu got down from his shoulder to get prepared.

The raven haired trainer then heard enormous cheering from the stands and looked forward for his jaw to drop. It was his father, but not cloaked: he was in his red attire and with the trademark cap. He also sported two bracelets, one on both wrists and he had Pika next to him. "Ash," he started. "I have been wanting to have this encounter with you, but I wanted to do it as your father, not an enemy." Ash went wide eyed at this and looked forward nod. "Thank you."

" _What a turn of events! Satoshi is actually Ash's father! And he gave up the cloak too!"_

"I would prefer to be called by my real name, but whatever," Ashura said as he smirked and looked forward towards his son. "To a great battle, son."

Ash shadowed his eyes under his cap and smiled as he shook his head in an excited manner before then bringing his head back up with tears forming in the corners of his eyes, "Of course dad!" The raven haired trainer could not have wished for a better opponent, even better, ever since he was a child he had wished to challenge his father to a battle, and now he was going to get a full on six on six with him. The Kanto native then passed his hand through his eyes and cleared his throat as he regained composure. Ash then pumped his fist as he looked at his father, "no holding back!"

"I wouldn't want it any other way," Ashura replied as he smiled back.

" _Now let's see in which battlefield we will be holding the first part of the finals!"_

The battlefield was visible even before it came to the top to be at level with the trainers. Looking around, both trainer were not expecting this type of battlefield at all, in fact they were expecting a normal field, but this one was monstrous: It had four large skyscrapers with roads making a large cross as hey had a small plaza in the middle and some trees and lamp posts lining the streets.

"What is this? A city field?" Ash asked as he looked around.

"Pika…" Pikachu said in awe as he also looked at the monstrosity in front of him.

" _And this will be a city battlefield, one of the special battlefield that we had developed for this battle!"_

The crowd roared as the referee then appeared in the middle of the plaza at a distance that both Ashura and Ash could hear. "I know you may be wondering what the twist is, but let me address the rules to begin with." Both trainers nodded at this while looking at the referee that was standing in the center plaza of the city battlefield. "This will be a full six on six battle with substitutions allowed. Furthermore, the field will be changed after three pokemon on either side are unable to continue and as soon as all six pokemon on either side are declared unable to battle, the battle will be over."

"That does not seem so bad, like a normal battle," Ash muttered as he then noticed the referee raise his hand again.

The referee then spoke up again, this time catching Ashura and Ash off guard: "Now for the twist, the trainer will be able to join his pokemon in the battlefield during a battle to aid in any way possible during the battle!" This made both Ash and Ashura go a little wide eyed both muttering some form of metaphor that described their feelings towards the battlefield. "Now trainers, choose your first pokemon!"

Ash smirked as he reached into his belt and grabbed a pokeball before shooting it outwards: "Sceptile I choose you!"

The pokeball arched through the air before opening to reveal a bright light that materialized into the grass reptilian that had a twig on his mouth. "Sceptile!" He chanted as he flexed his muscles and looked upwards with a large battlecry. "SCEPTILE!" Ash smirked at this, Sceptile had not forgotten his last encounter with Ashura, and it was bound to be a great battle.

Ashura smirked as he pulled out a pokeball from his belt and threw it forward: "Come on out! Aegislash!"

Ash watched carefully as the pokeball opened into a shield like Pokemon the emerged and then appeared silently in front of the opposing raven haired trainer. The Katonian boy noticed that the opposing pokemon was silent and in blade form, not shield form at all. 'That has to be Zoroark, no doubt about it…'

" _So Ash will lead with his speedy Sceptile and Satoshi will with his mysterious Aegislash! This battle with the main twist of the trainer joining the pokemon in battle will spice things up! Let's see what these two trainers can give us!"_

The referee looked at both pokemon standing in the street and then smiled as he referenced the trainers. "Alright then, good luck to both of you in the finals and may the champion be the eventual winner." The referee then lowers his arm as he said the magical words the Ash and Ashura were anticipating to hear: "Let the battle… BEGIN!"

 **Battle music begin! Ash (Sceptile) vs Ashura (Aegislash):**

Both trainers and their pokemon (including the electric mice) bolted out of their positions at their sides of the arena sprinting towards the center of the battlefield in a delta formation, the raven haired trainers were running behind and to the left of Aegislash and Sceptile while the Pikachus ran to the right and behind the larger bipedal pokemon.

"LEAF BLADE!/NIGHT SLASH!" Both trainers called out as their partners began to increase their speed and rush forward while creating their own blades. Sceptile and Aegislash then swing their blades in front of each other as they began to close the gap between each other. The crowd's cheering intensified as both blades began to near each other in slow motion. As soon as the two attacks collided, it began a shockwave that radiated through the whole stadium and made both trainers get knocked a little back by the shock wave of the attacks.

" _It seems that both trainers are already giving it their all!"_

Both pokemon fell in front of their trainers and looked up noticing that they were in the center plaza of the arena. Ash smirked as he then looked up and saw the battlefield's trees and then smirked as he eyed the leaves. "Sceptile use leaf storm!"

"Tile!" Sceptile shouted as he then turned around and shot the leaves out in a tornadic fashion towards the blade and shield pokemon.

Ashura looked at the leaves and smiled as he then pointed forward and shouted: "go forward with flamethrower!" Both attacks shot out with the barrage of flames moving faster than the smaller raven haired trainer had expected with caused an explosion to scatter a lot of smoke in both directions.

The scarfed trainer then smirked as he then smiled and put his arm out to the side: "Sceptile strike Aegislash with a powerful dragon claw!" The grass gecko pokemon nodded as he made his two green scaly claws and then charged through the smoke towards the supposed ghost and steel type.

"Dodge that!" Ashura exclaimed as he noticed the trap. Aegislash hopped back and out of the smoke to land behind the smoke in time for Sceptile to strike the ground from below. "Nice try son, but that did not work."

Ash then smirked as he watched the smoke clear: "Who said I was trying to hit you with dragon claw?" The raven haired trainer then put his arm out and smiled as he made the next move: "Sceptile use leaf storm and let him have it!"

"Scep!" Sceptile charged up with a smile as he began to create leaves behind his tail surround the green forest like formation to then shoot out with a wind that successfully entrapped Aegislash and launched him into the air. Ashura looked up and smirked as he then saw as Aegislash landed in front of him with a slightly dazed look, but still fine.

"Zora…" Aegislash then muttered as he began to glow purple and begin to transform into a black and red themed fox pokemon that looked forward with a determined pose. "ZORA!"

" _Wow! Who knew that the Aegislash was actually a Zoroark under the illusion ability!"_

"So you finally broke the shell," Ashura congratulated as he smiled and narrowed his eyes. "Good, because now the real fight can begin."

 **At the stands:**

"They are already beginning with all of their power," Serena muttered. "Amazing…" The sun was shining brightly from what the honey blonde could see. Still, the amazement in the stadium was extremely hyped as she watched the raven haired boy going against his father by running along his pokemon and sticking by his side. "Neither are backing down from the start…"

"I am not surprised that they are going this all out," Tierno replied as he put an arm to his chin. "Ash has to be careful." The stressed look on everyone's face returned, but Mairin kept a strong gaze with determination for the raven haired trainer to pull something off now that he had something going on.

 **At the battle:**

The crowd cheered loudly as Ash then ran to Sceptile's side with Pikachu next to him and pointed forward looking towards Zoroark, who was in front of them standing with a corrupt pose looking towards them, "Leaf storm!"

"Dodge it!"

"TILE!" Sceptile cried as he shot the barrage of leaves forward towards the dark fox pokemon. The illusion specialist jumped up as the attack landed on the ground and caused an explosion that left the raven haired boy gritting his teeth as he watched as the dust slowly settled in front of him.

"Grrr…" Ash muttered as he looked forward.

"We are ready now Ash," Ashura replied as he smirked and began to step back to allow space for his son to see what was in front of him.

"Sceptile…"

"Zora…" Zoroark muttered as he was close to the ground with one hand touching the ground close to the opposite trainer platform and at the opposite end of the arena. The dark type slowly stood up and looked forward, a view from behind showed a slight breeze making the black and red hair with a light blue orb wave slowly as the dark type stood powerfully with the light making his eyes gleam.

"Sceptile, leaf storm, don't stop!"

"Scep!" Sceptile shouted as he turned his tail around and began to shoot out different barrages of leaves straight forward towards the fox that flexed his knees to begin to run.

Zoroark took off with his hands behind him as he ran with a speed that could rival the leaf storm being thrown at him. "Zora!" Zoroark shouted as he side stepped to avoid the leaves that zoomed past the dark type from the side as in slow motion. Zoroark then jumped into the air and extended his arms as he began to fall again and somersaulted and kept running forward. The leaf storm kept coming and in slow motion, Zoroark ducked and slid under one of the beams to end up then running towards the large building at his side.

" _What is Satoshi's strategy now?"_

"Keep going Sceptile!"

"TILE!"

Zoroark began to run up the side of the large glassed structure that was beaming brightly a reflection of the sun. The crowd gasped in amazement as the illusion master ran up the tall building while avoiding the different leaf attack coming. "Zora?" Zoroark suddenly asked in a panicked voice as he saw one of the beams come closer and closer to him to the point that it was impossible to dodge.

Seeing there was no time to dodge, Ashura then put his hand out and made his next command, "Jump and get out of there!" The fox nodded as he then sprung out from the building and landed in the floor with a sprint going fast out of the direction of the plaza and heading towards out of the four edges of the building.

Ash looked at he leaving fox as the scene shifted to show that Zoroark's feet began to move faster and faster as he kept running before reaching a top speed. The raven haired trainer commanding the Sceptile raised a hand into the hard white ground and shouted: "Grab him and bring him back with frenzy plant!" Sceptile clapped his fists as he then shoved them into the ground which caused green plants to shoot out from the ground towards Zoroark. The older man seemed shocked at the move and raised his eyebrows to then see the green plants actually catching up.

"Zora?" Zoroark asked as he looked behind him a little surprised to see the large vines catching up. "Zoroark!" Zoroark gasped as the black fox then noticed the vines wrap around his torso and stop him from running forward. In a quick flash, he vines then retracted and pulled the hanged pokemon to be in front of the forest pokemon. Both trainers had similar smirking expressions as they noticed that Zoroark was trapped… Or so Ash thought.

" _Zoroark had been caught by Sceptile, what can Satoshi do to get out of this situation?"_

"I got you now Dad," Ash smirked as he turned to his father, who was next to him with his hands on his hips.

Ashura just smiled and looked back with a bright flash of reflected sunlight causing his eyes to gleam, "Are you sure about that?" Pikachu looked surprised as he then turned to Ash as began to pull on his shirt. The trainer looked at the mouse and asked what was wrong, but then the confirmation came as Ashura put his fist in the air with a large smile. "Zoroark, get out of there with night daze!"

"What? Oh no! Sceptile, cover him up and don't let him escape!"

"Tile!"

"Zora…" Zoroark muttered as he began to glow purple with some dark energy as an aura beginning to form. Sceptile acted fast as he made the vines attempt to completely cover the illusion pokemon. Suddenly, it was too much to handle and the vines shattered as Zoroark made the plants disappear completely while also making an explosion which caused Ash, Pikachu, and Sceptile to be pushed back.

" _Amazing! And through night daze, Satoshi gets Zoroark out of the tough situation!"_

The stands roared with excitement as Ash and Pikachu slowly recovered and looked over towards Sceptile who was slowly getting back up. "Are you alright Sceptile?"

"Tile…" Sceptile responded as he began to glow green. "SCEPTILE!" The green aura sparked a strong aura to emerge through the grass types entire body. Ashura looked with excitement towards the grass type with a twig on his mouth, but it was clear that things were about to get harder.

Ash smirked as he then walked up to the enraged grass type and looked at the Zoroark that was next to his trainer with a corrupt pose. "Alright Sceptile, run into the city and hide, when the time comes, strike Zoroark with all you've got!" The grass type nodded as he then jumped out of view from behind Ash and Pikachu, who both had smiles.

Ashura smiled back as he pointed forward, "Zoroark, find him, and Pika," Ashura said as he got the attention of his Pikachu. "Help me find Sceptile as well."

"Pika!" Pika shouted as he began to run in the direction opposite of Zoroark who began to leaf out of the way in he same fashion as Sceptile did.

" _Now Ash has initiated a chase, what will happen?"_

"Pikachu?" Pikachu asked as he looked up at his trainer with a curious and worried voice only to notice him smirking.

Ash looked down at his partner and smiled, "Let's see what would happen if Sceptile pulls off what he trained to do." Suddenly, Ash looked up to notice that Sceptile emerged with his green glow while being chased by his opponents while sporting his large green glow. This made the boy pump his fist and begin to run towards the action. "Sceptile, remember what you can do and use dragon claw and follow it up with the best leaf blade you've got!"

"Scep!" Sceptile nodded as his eyes gleamed in the sunlight as he formed two green claws and began to jump as he turned around with a swift pivot. Suddenly, the green frog made his claws interact with the purple blades that we're coming from the illusion pokemon and then held the stalemate for a bit as sparks flew in every direction possible within the interaction. "TILE!" Sceptile shouted as he then pushed through and made Zoroark collide with the ground below. The green frog then landed in the ground and retracted his claws to then make the lateral part of his hands glow green and form two very large blades that he then crossed in front of his face as he began to run forward.

" _What a large leaf blade! This may go Ash's way now!"_

Ashura noticed this and knew he needed to act fast: "Zoroark, jump and use flamethrower!" Zoroark nodded and growled a little as he waited for the attack to come closer before then jumping right into the air at a sight that made Ash panic a little then to see the large barrage of flames begin to cave down towards the green frog that was looking up slightly dazed.

"Sceptile no!" Ash shouted as he covered his face with an orange glow around him and Pikachu caused by the large inferno in front of him. "Sceptile resist it!"

"Tile…"

"He can't take much more," Ashura smirked. "Zoroark finish him with night daze!"

"Zora… ROARK!" Zoroark pounced on top of Sceptile, who was still trying to take the fire and then made his black body glow all purple before then causing a wave which made Ash, Pikachu, and Pika shield themselves as Ashura stood without flinching to see what happened.

The dust settled after a bit and the younger of the trainers turned around to see Sceptile on the ground with a non-glowing body which was slowly giving off smoke as he lied in the concrete. "Sceptile is unable to battle, Zoroark wins!"

" _And it is over! Sceptile has just been Ash's fall guy, what an amazing victory for Satoshi!"_

Ash and Pikachu then ran to their green friend and kneeled down next to him. "Sceptile are you alright?"

"Pikachu!"

"Sceptile…" Sceptile muttered as he slowly sat up with a tired voice.

 **At the stands:**

"Sceptile…" Clemont muttered as he looked forward. "He definitely did try, but he still fell short."

Brock looked at Clemont and nodded as he sighed, "Specially against Calem, Sceptile has been off from his battling, and not Ash has gone down one pokemon, which is bad considering the fact that he has had the first knocked out pokemon in the last couple of battles except Hunter." Brock then put a hand to his chin. "This guy is tough."

Professor Sycamore and Diantha looked at the field with excited looks on their faces as they watched the large arena. It might have been a little hard for them to see the actual battle, but then televised coverage filled in some of the gaps throughout the stadium. "So, Satoshi is going to sweep like always…"

"He is a very tough opponent," Professor Sycamore replied as he looked back down to see Ash tending to Sceptile. "Ash still has five pokemon left, so let's see what he does."

In the room where Lysandre is looking down at the battle, he smirked, "So, Ashura seems to have the advantage… Let's see if Ash can even do anything in return."

 **At the battle:**

" _What will Ash do now that Sceptile has been defeated?"_

"Sceptile, return," Ash said as he made the green frog turn into green energy that then returned to the red and white device. "You allowed me to see what Zoroark is capable of, take a good rest now." Ash then got up to see his father along with Zoroark and Pika walking over to him.

"Ash, Sceptile is very well trained," Ashura said as he looked down and smiled. "He definitely has proven himself a worthy opponent." The man then looked up and smirked. "Now… i am going to throw at you another challenge. Zoroark return." Zoroark nodded as he got sucked into the pokeball in Ashura's hand which caused Ash to look at his father in curiosity knowing that he was switching pokemon. "Now…" Ashura began to walk back and away as he held his arms out with one hand holding another pokeball. "Sink into the shadows, Aegislash!"

Aegislash emerged from the bright light and set his own body in the shield form before beginning to glow black and sinking into the ground to Ash's surprise. Watching his smirking father walk away, the raven haired trainer gritted his teeth: He wanted to prove he belonged in this fight- no… He wanted to prove he was better. He did not even stop looking at his father as he spoke up. "Pikachu, I want you to take this battle."

"Pika…" Pikachu muttered as he walked to be in front of Ash and looked down at the ground while sparkling electricity on his cheeks while looking at the shadows of the large towers and searching for the moving one. Instantly seeing Ash's choice, the entire stadium began to cheer knowing this was going to be an amazing battle hopefully for the electric mouse, still, it was obvious that Aegislash did look like a tough opponent.

" _And Ash's Pikachu will now set the stage for the next battle! While Satoshi has picked his very own Aegislash!"_

Ash looked at the ground and watched the shadow of Aegislash begin to move towards Pikachu and narrowed his eyes. "Pikachu, use iron tail and propel yourself up into the air, quick!" Pikachu nodded as he obliged and made his tail glow rigid and white as he then slammed it against the ground. "Great! This will get you some great airtime to avoid any shadow sneaks!" Ash commented with a smile and a pump of his fist as he looked up towards the electric rodent in the air.

"I doubt it, sacred sword!"

"Pika?" Pikachu asked as he then saw the shield and sword pokemon emerge from the ground and then make the sword glow bright blue before striking the electric mouse in the abdomen which made Ash completely gasp in shock. "Pika!" Pikachu squealed in pain as he fell in front of Ash and shook off the pain and then looked up with determined, gleaming eyes.

"Grrr… Pikachu jump at it and use iron tail!" Ash commanded as the sun's rays reflected off his bright brown eyes and he pointed forward. Pikachu once more made his tail glow white as he began to charge forward towards Aegislash with a powerful incoming attack and then used the tower that was closest to Aegislash to run up and effectively position himself on top of the ghost and steel type while also swinging his tail down towards the shield and blade.

"Sacred sword again!"

"Aegis!"

"PIKA!" Pikachu shouted as he collided with the large sword and used the momentum he was using to drive both himself and his opponent down towards the ground, the large collision setting off sparks as the two pokemon fell, the electric mouse desperately gritting his own teeth. "Pikachu!"

Ash and Ashura were both shown, one on the left and one on the right as their clothes ruffled and the scarf on the younger trainer's neck waved. Both pokemon had fallen and caused an explosion in the middle of the field that left smoke and dust searing in all directions. The crowd cheered as soon as the dust settled seeing that both pokemon were still standing, surprisingly, the electric mouse being able to daze the possessed blade.

" _What a collision! Both pokemon are still standing! This is so impressive from both sides!"_

"Alright," Ash shouted as he craned his hand. "Iron tail once again!"

Ashura narrowed his eyes as the edges of the scene darkened. "I got you now," Ashura muttered as the scene returned to normal and retracted to show the man pumping his fist and exclaiming out his next command: "king's shield!"

"King's shield?" Ash asked himself as he then watched Aegislash retract into shield mode and then make a hexagonal barrier in front of him that clearly seemed impenetrable. Pikachu slammed hard into the defensive move and was pushed back almost immediately after.

Pikachu landed next to his trainer and then felt himself being consumed in a blue glow before then blinking. "Pika?"

" _Incase anyone didn't know, King's shield decreases attack power of direct attacks if they collide with the barrier. In this case, Pikachu's attack dropped!"_

Ash went wide eyed as he then realized what had happened. "Pikachu's attack power lowers every time we attack directly at king's shield." He then put the hand that had his keystone engraved into the fingerless glove up to his chin, the while stone glistening to to the sun light. "What can I do to attack if Pikachu won't hit as hard?... That's it, special attacks!" Ash then pointed forward with a smile. "Pikachu use quick attack!"

"Interesting," Ashura muttered as he watched the electric pokemon shoot forward like a bullet with a white trail as he ran. He did not understand why his own son would do something so reckless as he knew that ghost types could not be hit by normal type moves. Maybe something was being planned…

"Pika!"

" _What is Ash doing using a normal type move against a ghost type?"_

Ash smirked as he then saw Pikachu get near Aegislash and then the sword pokemon allowed the electric mouse to traverse right through because of the typing of the move. Ash then saw his opportunity and punched the air in front of him. "Use thunderbolt!"

"Pika… CCCHHHUUUUUU!" Pikachu made his chanting battle cry as he then shot electricity in all directions while being behind the powerful blade pokemon, thus making it wince in pain as it took the hit thus making Ashura and Pika go wide eyed.

"Now thunderbolt again!" Ash shouted with a victorious pose as he heard the cheers he was receiving. It was clear that Pikachu was doing good work and could definitely get this win for the score to be matched up, and better yet prove that he could battle this.

Ashura had other plans though as he put his arms at his sides and talked in a dark voice: "Shadow sneak!"

"Gislash!" Aegislash muttered as he made himself glow black before sinking back into the concrete. The electric beam of electricity crackled from above and then dissipated into thin air without causing much of an explosion, but instead making Ash grit his teeth harder and clench his fists.

" _Uh oh, from where will Aegislash attack next?"_

 **At the stands:**

"Ugh, can't he stop hiding?" Calem asked with gritted teeth as he looked back down at the battlefield. "It is almost as if Pikachu can't do anything."

"It is frustrating, but maybe there is a way in which Ash can manipulate the shadows to go in his favor," Brock replied as he put a hand to his chin. Looking at the field, there was nothing significant that he could see either than the slightly covered look by the towers. "Maybe Ash can get a better view since he is with Pikachu."

"Pichu…" Kapi said in a very worried voice as she looked down at the field trying to find her crush, which was apparently struggling against another pokemon. Serena held a nice comforting grip on her which made Kapi feel a little more alleviated, but the stress was there including the cheering from fans looking onto the field with excitement.

Under the scoreboard Diantha and Professor Sycamore looked down at the field with very serious expressions wondering what could be done. They knew that if Pikachu went down, things will get harder and harder for Ash.

 **At the battlefield:**

"There has to be a way," Ash whispered to himself as he looked down at the field and then looked up at the top of the arena to then quirk an eyebrow. 'So it is definitely not noon, so that means that the sun casts a shadow on the field at a way that…' Ash then looked down to see Pikachu looking at the black figures of the ground and wondering which one was moving. Looking to the right, one shadow moved, but it was a tree blowing to the wind. The entire arena stayed quiet as the raven haired trainer looked down to see that one of the shadows was navigating itself around all the others. 'That's it!' Ash thought as he went wide eyed.

"PIKA!" Pikachu cried in pain as he got struck with a ghost type move that made the steel sword pokemon shoot from the ground.

"Pikachu!" Ash shouted as he then ran up to Pikachu and looked at him. "Are you alright?" The electric mouse stood up and nodded as they both turned towards Ashura, Pika, and Aegislash, who was next to the other two.

" _And it hits! Ash is definitely in trouble if this keeps up!"_

Ashura smirked as he pumped his fist, "Shadow sneak again!" Aegislash made himself glow black again as he sunk into the concrete once again, Ash watching as the shadow of the steel type began to navigate through the others, avoiding contact.

"Alright Pikachu, we are going to finish this now," Ash declared as he smirked and looked at his electric type. Looking back up, Ashura saw his son smiling, something that made him chuckle to himself as the raven haired trainer saw the incoming attack from below the ground. "Pikachu, use iron tail towards the air in front of you!"

"What is this now?" Ashura asked as he watched a confused Pikachu make his tail white to then go forward and strike the air in front of him to then see that his son's eyes were gleaming brighter and his smile getting bigger.

"Pikachu," Ash shouted as he then saw the shadow trying to zigzag from behind, "kick back!" Pikachu nodded and did just that as he then made the shadow recoil which seemed to be confusing. The shadow encircled from around and then began to rush towards Pikachu from the front again. "Now Pikachu, use thunderbolt right in front of you!"

" _It seems as if Pikachu is attacking the air!"_

"Pika… CHUUUUUU!" Pikachu shouted as he shot the electric beam forward to the cheers of the crowd and the surprise of Ashura as he noticed that his Aegislash was propelled out of the ground like if it was hit with a powerful attack.

The raven haired trainer smirked as he then reached forward and crushed his hand in front of him. "Thunderbolt once more!"

"Pika…" Pikachu jumped into the air and backflipped as he made his electricity swarm him. "CHUUUUUU!" The electricity was brought forward in a very swift and firm electric charge that then caused a dissipation in the steel and dark type's power to nothing as Pikachu landed on Ash's shoulder while watching as Aegislash slowly fell to the ground to the sight of a surprised Ashura, who noticed that his pokemon had been completely defeated as it crashed to the concrete: sword separated from shield.

"Aegislash is unable to battle, Pikachu wins!"

" _Amazing! Ash has managed to finally defeat Satoshi's Aegislash! This battle may be better than expected!"_

The crowd roared in approval as the scoreboard updated to show that Aegislash had been defeated:

 **Ash:** _Sceptile_ (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) **Pikachu**

 **Satoshi:** _Aegislash_ (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) Zoroark

Ashura smirked as Aegislash got sucked back into his pokeball. The larger trainer looked at the pokeball and sighed as he put it back into his belt without saying a single word and being lost in his thoughts about how amusing this battle is.

 **At the stands:**

"YES!" Bonnie and Mairin exclaimed as they stood up from their seats nearly causing Squishy, Dedenne and Chespie go fall to the ground as they clapped.

"This is actually not looking so bad, Ash managed to get one down," Tierno said as he pumped his fist.

Calem though, he looked at the field unconvinced with a similar expression to Clemont's, "Still, Ash has to work hard to get in front, things will be more difficult as he defeats pokemon… If he even gets to…"

Serena though, she smirked as she looked at Ash in the field while blocking out the worried conversation Calem, Trevor, Shauna, Clemont and Brock were having, "I know you can do this Ash," Serena whispered to herself as she tried to hold on as well as she could to the restless Pichu in her hands that was still celebrating Pikachu's victory.

 **At the battlefield:**

Ash looked down at Pikachu and smiled as he rubbed his ears, "Take a good rest for now buddy, I am going to need you later." Ash said the last part while eyeing Pika, who was standing next to his trainer while eyeing the electric mouse on the teenager's side. "I want to go with someone else for this next battle." Ash said as he pulled out a pokeball and enlarged it in his hand. He looked at the pokeball and smirked as he knew this pokemon could take on the next one.

"Alright Ash," Ashura replied as he grabbed a pokeball from his own belt and looked at it. 'Ash truly is battling at his best… I know Charizard is not on my side, but I must use my other strongest to take this win!'. Ashura then looked up at his son and smirked. "Let's give this next battle everything we've got!"

"Agreed!"

"GO!" Both trainers shouted as they ran forward with their hands pulled back and their Pikachu's chasing close behind. "FLY!" Both trainers shouted as they launched the pokeballs forward. The two pokeballs crossed each other and then both trainers went wide eyed as they had completely forgotten about their own safety. "Urgh!" Both trainers grunted as they ducked and shielded themselves as the pokeballs burst open and unleashed two pokemon that flew at blinding speed over the trainers this causing a large burst of wind as the two pokemon curved upwards and into the sky above. Ash and Ashura then looked up and narrowed their eyes as they had their fists at their sides: "USE SUPERSONIC!" Both trainers yelled in unison.

"VERNNNN!" Ash's Noivern shouted as he turned around and made a sound wave beam rush towards his opponent that was opposite of him.

"TYYYLLL!" Ashura's pokemon, being an Aerodactyl also screeched as he released the sound waves towards Noivern. Suddenly, both trainers went wide eyed noticing that Noivern and Aerodactyl began to lose altitude and fly in weird ways as they pulled up on opposite sides of the city field.

" _Both pokemon are confused!"_

It was quiet for a second as Ash and Ashura stayed with their electric rodents on their side of the field, expecting the pokemon to come in from the horizontal street. Suddenly, a swoosh like supersonic sound occurred and two blurs crossed each other at incredible speed and crashed into buildings diagonal from each other making Ash and Ashura's jaws drop.

"Noivern!" Ash called out as he looked to the building to his left.

"Aero!" Ashura called out to the building also in his left.

The two pokemon had crashed hard into the buildings and ended up inside of them with the dust beginning to settle. As soon as the smoke cleared, Noivern and Aero appeared, both shaking their heads trying to snap out of the confusion as they then took flight again.

"NOI!"

"DACTYL!"

"Noivern, take flight and use your echo location to avoid the buildings, then get up close and use a powerful Boomburst!" Ash exclaimed as he began to run forward towards where Noivern was beginning to fly. The large eared bat nodded as he looked down and then shot forward to disappear between buildings. The raven haired trainer then noticed that Ashura had called out a similar move, so he knew he had to take control of finding Aero. "Pikachu, run around the field and if you see Aerodactyl, shoot a thunderbolt into the sky to alert me!"

" _It seems that Ash has sent Pikachu do do some scouting work! What a way to use his resources!"_

"Pikachu!" Pikachu exclaimed as he began to run around in the other direction.

"Now where are you going to pop out of?" Ashura asked as he looked around seeing that the sound had gone quiet, even the stadium had stopped talking for this occasion. "Hmmm, if Noivern attacks from above then I might be able to shift things, but I believe that Noivern could have the advantage here… Maybe I can just, got it…"

"CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Ash heard the chant and his eyes shifted to the right to see that a thunderbolt ripped through the sky crackling electricity at amazing speed that dissipated into thin air.

The raven haired trainer smirked as he began to run in the direction of the electric beam, his father beginning to chase after him with Pika as well. Turning the corner, Ash noticed that there was a clear view of the stands and the cheering fans, but then looking forward there was what's he was looking for: Aero flying in circles. "What is he waiting for?" Ash asked himself as he then noticed that a yellow rodent was approaching him.

"Pikapi!"

" **SWOOSH!"**

"Pikachu? Huh wait, oh NO!" Ash exclaimed as he then saw Noivern zooming towards Aerodactyl from above while charging up the sounwave beam. "Noivern attack from another angle!" Ash called out in panic, but for the dragon bat it was too late as he released the sound waves forward in a tornadic fashion. "Noivern get prepared to dodge!"

"Noi?"

"Dodge it and follow up with giga impact!"

"Dactyl!" The dodge was quick and effective as Aerodactyl began to spiral around the blast of sound in the direction of the flying and dragon type pokemon. The rock type then made himself glow in a yellow and purple spiraled aura as he approached Noivern at fast speed.

"Vern!" Noivern shouted as he turned his body to the left to allow the attack to pass through. As that happened, he noticed that Aero was spiraling around to try and hit him with the giga impact this causing the dragon type to make himself dive down towards the ground and then pull up last second with the fossil pokemon behind him. Hearing the call to use sky attack, Noivern made his own self glow purple with celestial energy before then curving up enough to make himself fly above the stands. "NOII!" Noivern chanted as he then turned around and collided head on with Aerodactyl while causing an explosion right above the stands. The two pokemon then separated with their auras around them as they began to encircle the stadium while trying to hit each other.

" _What great collisions of power between the two pokemon!"_

 **At the stands:**

"INCOMING!" Trevor shouted as he everyone ducked. " **SWOOSH!"** Aero flew above everyone this causing them to get blown away by a gust of wind created by the sheer potential of the rock and flying type's powerful wings. Everyone of Ash's friends then looked up to see that Aero and Noivern were beginning to head for each other again. The microphone systems were portraying the commands that the trainers were giving, and once again it was called for giga impact against sky attack.

" **BOOM!"** The attack happened above the field… but then the pokemon began to take charge towards the scoreboard.

"URGH!" Diantha and Professor Sycamore both covered themselves as they watched both pokemon cross each other narrowly above them and beginning to circle in opposite directions above the stands and towards the opposite end of the hexagonal stadium. The stands attempting to protect themselves as the two flying types passed overhead. Diantha and Professor Sycamore grew horrified at the scene, the battle was completely out of control at this point.

Lysandre watched as the pokemon raced towards him from the window he was looking through. Noivern came from his left while Aero from his right. The orange haired man narrowed his eyes as the two pokemon collided right in front of him and then created and unexpected shock wave that began to make cracks in the glass. "What?" Lysandre flinched as he watched Noivern and Aero struggling to overpower each other.

"Aero…."

"Noi…"

Both pokemon then pushed forward until…

" **BOOM!"**

" **SHATTER!"** The glass in front of Lysandre shattered completely in all directions towards him thus causing the entire glass to fall around him and some to shoot out in all directions. Lysandre felt as if something sharp had pierced his right ear. Curiously touching his right ear, the Team Flare leader felt a warm liquid substance that when he looked at it was clearly blood.

"Amazing, the power Ash and Ashura hold is undeniably second to none... Their strength is not to mess with," Lysandre said as he smirked and looked at his bloody hand. "They will be the tools for my creation!"

 **At the battlefield:**

"Use hurricane!" Ash shouted as he ran with Pikachu next to his father. "Don't let Aero get any way of knocking you around!" Watching Noivern begin to dive down towards the battlefield, Ash saw his trusty dragon type begin to flap his wings and create a strong wind that was beginning to the make everything and everyone shake.

" _And hurricane is sparking definite trouble for Satoshi! What will happen here?"_

Ashura smirked as he held his arm close to his face, but then commanded for his own counter attack: "Aero stop him by using hyper beam!"

"AEROOOOOOO!" Aero shouted as he pushed a dark as draconic beam forward towards the large vortex of energy consuming the entire city field. A large explosion rang out from where Noivern was and Ash flinched as he watched his sound wave dragon begin to fall towards the ground.

"Noi…"

"Noivern no!" Ash shouted as he gritted his teeth. "That's it, Noivern hit him with a Boomburst!"

"HYPER BEAM!"

"Noi… VERRRRNNN!"

"Aero… DACTYL!"

Both pokemon charged up the attacks and shot them out simultaneously. As soon as they collided, they caused a large explosion in the middle of the field that ran out in all directions and shattered the glass in the intermediate stories of the fake skyscrapers while causing a giant cloud of smoke appear in front of them.

Ash then knew he had the advantage and smirked as he put his fist out. "Alright, Noivern, take that smoke and use sky attack!"

" _Amazing! And Ash is using the smoke to his advantage to see Aerodactyl with Noivern's echolocation!"_

"Noi… VERRRRNNN!"

" **BOOM!"** Ashura looked surprised as he saw Aero get smashed upon one of the buildings to then cause a giant explosion that caused the tower to begin to collapse. Ash, Pikachu, Ashura and Pika all ran out of the way as the ruble fell to the ground leaving that particular tower completely leveled and on the ground which caused an eerie silence from the stands.

"NOIVERN!" Noivern chanted as he flew on top of the destroyed building while Aero was on the large pile of debris with a completely unconscious state.

"Aerodactyl is unable to battle, Noivern wins!"

" _What a win and way to secure the lead for Ash!"_

"Alright, the lead is ours!" Ash shouted as he pumped his fists.

Pikachu also leaped into the air with a happy pose while throwing a fist into the air. "Pi Pikachu!"

The crowd cheered as Aero was sucked back into his pokeball while the scoreboard updated to show that the rock and flying type pokemon was knocked out. "Not bad Ash, not bad at all," Ashura said as he noticed that Noivern had landed next to his son. "Now Ash, remember back when you were a child as to what we used to do together?"

Pikachu looked back at Ash with a confused expression as the later had a smile on his face. "Of course, we would ride on your Dragonite and we would catch pokemon, I remember that Pidgey you caught once, I am guessing that you are going to make me battle it now that it is probably a Pidgeot, right?"

Ashura gave a hearty laugh as he looked at Noivern and smiled. "Close Ash, but you are not going to battle what I caught." He then pulled out a pokeball and bobbed it in his hand. "You are going to battle what we were _riding_!" Ashura then threw the pokeball forward and exclaimed: "GO DRAGONITE!"

The pokeball opened and with a bright flashing light, a large orange dragon appeared while touching the ground with one hand and then pumping both of his fists while roaring proudly. "ROOOAAARRR!"

" _And Satoshi's next pokemon will be a Dragonite! Satoshi is definitely not fooling around!"_

Ash flinched as he was caught off guard by text Dragonite that was in front of him with a powerful expression in his face. No doubt it was the same Dragonite from when he was a child. "So I am battling you Dragonite, Noivern, let's focus all of our power!" Ash then went wide eyed as he remembered something Hunter had told him at the dance party: ' _Rumor has it that the man in the cloak was able to sweep Lance, champion of Kanto with only a Dragonite.'_ Ash looked at the Dragonite in front of him and smirked. "No doubt it had to be true, Noivern let's go with all of our power!"

"NOI!"

"ATTACK!" Both trainers shouted in unison as they put their hands in front of each other. The two pokemon charged up their own attacks and fired them off. The result: a Boomburst colliding with a light blue freezing beam. Ash knew that it had to be ice beam of course, but he knew he needed to proceed with caution if he was going to defeat Dragonite with Noivern.

" _And it is revealed that Dragonite knows ice beam! This move can be detrimental to dragon types like Noivern!"_

"Alright now Noivern, take flight!"

"Noivern!"

Ashura watched his opponents make their move as he pointed forward. "Ice beam on his wings!" Dragonite looked up and made a sphere of energy appear in his mouth as he fired both attacks forward and towards the flying and dragon type with giant ears. The cold beam then shot out and collided with the large bat wings that Noivern has which caused the sound waved dragon to begin to fall towards the ground to a shocked looking Ash. "Now finish him with sky drop!"

"Roar!" Dragonite roared as he bolted forward and grabbed ahold of Noivern with his arms before then swinging him around and around to launch him into the ground.

" **BOOM!"** Ash watched as Noivern crashed into the ground and was left completely immobile by the collision, instantly his concern showed. "Noivern no!"

"Pikachu!"

"Noivern is unable to battle, Dragonite is the winner!" The referee declared while pointing at Dragonite.

"Rooarrrr!" Dragonite roared as he flexed his muscles and landed next to Ashura with a very victorious pose.

" _And there it is! With just some attacks Satoshi has evened out the score!"_

Ash sighed as he pulled out Noivern's pokeball and recalled back the sound wave dragon. "Noivern you were awesome, take a good rest." Ash then put the pokeball back into his belt as he watched Ashura pull out a pokeball of his own and make his Dragonite get shifted back into red energy that finally ended when he put the device back in his belt.

" _It looks like Satoshi will also be substituting out Dragonite, what pokemon will our trainers to with next?"_

 **At the stands:**

"Things are getting heated," Calem said as he grabbed the edge of his seat with a stressful look. "Ash, come on…"

Serena held Kapi tight as she kept a strong look for her beloved throughout the battle. She knew he could come out on top if he believed in himself, and this was definitely the time for Ash to work his magic.

"This battle is truly a battle of will," Brock said to which Clemont and Shauna nodded. The tanned gym leader from Pewter City then narrowed his eyes as he watched Ash and Ashura from afar. "Be careful, Ash."

 **Ash:** _Noivern Sceptile_ (pokeball) (pokeball) (pokeball) Pikachu

 **Satoshi:** _Aerodactyl Aegislash_ (pokeball) (pokeball) Zoroark Dragonite

 **A/N: What will happen next? Only time will tell in the next addition of Road to Master!**

 **Honestly though, this battle is very slow to pick up, it is still four on four despite the amount of words to describe it! Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**


	51. Chapter 51

**Alola:**

"Alright class," Professor Kukui said as he stood up from his desk. "Class has been dismissed." Everyone looked at the professor with gratitude, but they also had worry in their blood vessels as they had heard that Lillie was gone from the pokemon center that she was originally in. The room was quite nice, it had large desks scattered across the wooden floor and there was even open windows to the outside. Along with that, the front of the room had a large chalkboard where the professor had just finished his lesson: Special vs Physical.

Hau stood up from his seat with an uneasy feeling as he stretched and yawned while looking at the professor, "Professor, the Kalos League finals are supposed to be today, can we watch it?" Looking behind him, there was an instant light up in Lana, Mallow, Kiawe, and Sophocles' eyes as they looked at Hau with very eager eyes and curiosity.

Professor Kukui looked at the group and sighed, "Alright, we can just watch it through the projector if we tune into the right station." Following that, Professor Kukui went to his desk and clicked a few times with his mouse to then turn on the projector to display to the class the live events from overseas. "Wow, it looks like a heated battle," Kukui responded as he took in what he was seeing through the display.

The stadium had a deafening role from the stands as Malva appeared on screen. "This battle has already begun to climax. The battle between Ash's Sceptile and Satoshi's Zoroark ended to Satoshi, but Ash surprised many by winning the next two battles to which Satoshi responded with a fearsome Dragonite." Replays showed of the battles as the screen then shifted back to show the city field with both trainers in a staredown. "The next battle could be anyone's guess as to what could happen!"

Hau watched the screen with excitement as he smiled, "No way! Ash made it to the finals!" Everyone turned to him with confused look on their faces except Mallow as she noticed the familiar raven hair and the light blue scarf around the boy's neck with a Pikachu at his side.

"He's the guy that you battled, right Hau?" Mallow asked as she looked at the green haired trainer.

"Yea, and he is super strong too," Hau replied as he heard the announcer ask what two pokemon the two trainers would use next during this battle. Hau narrowed his eyes as he looked forward: "His Pikachu, Goodra, and Greninja managed to take me down surprisingly, but that is just the beginning of all of his power, his Sceptile, Noivern, and Charizard are definitely top notch, and right now he still has Pikachu, Goodra, Charizard, and Greninja left which means he is in a good spot."

Everyone in the class looked surprised and impressed at the same time as they looked back at the screen to see the raven haired trainer's determined look as he pulled out a pokeball. Kukui looked at Ash as well with a smirk: "So a strong trainer, this is interesting," he muttered as he watched the sun gleam in the raven haired trainer's eyes as he threw the pokeball forward.

 **A/N: Who is Ash going to go with next? It is just a matter of time before you find out. Anyways, the Kalos League only has about two more chapters after this one, so I am hyped up to see what will happen in the end of everything.**

 **Anyways, I hope you guys are hyped to see what will happen next in this battle!**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or "Lion" by Hollywood Undead**

Chapter 50- Ash against a master of illusions and a striking ace!

 **At the battlefield:**

"Goodra, I choose you!" Ash exclaimed as he threw the pokeball into the air. The device spun very fast until it then opened and emerged with a large slimy dragon that roared as he looked up at the sky. Ash narrowed his eyes waiting for his father's pick, he knew that whatever it was, if it was big, then Goodra can totally shut them down.

Ashura adjusted his hat as he looked at the large slimy dragon that was next to his son. "So, I hope you took notes from my last battle," He then pointed forward and with the sun making his eyes vibrant he made his choice. "Pika! You are in charge of this one!"

"Pika!" Pika shouted as he stepped forward. Ash noticed that his father's electric mouse had a little bit of spiky yellow hair on his head as he then charged up electricity on his bright red cheeks. Pikachu stook looking at Pika with narrowed eyes and then looked back at Goodra, something made Ash's electric rodent feel uneasy and helpless about this match. "Pikachu!" Pika finished saying as he stood up on his hind legs and motioned for Goodra to come at it.

" _And it seems that Ash is going with his Goodra as Satoshi will finally use his Pikachu, that although only was seen battling once, really defeated that Mega Swampert with a matter of attacks!"_

The referee signaled for the battle to resume and Ash smirked as he punched the air in front of him and looked at his large slimy friend. "Goodra, start this off with thunder!"

"Dra!" Goodra nodded as he then made his body glow in electricity before then firing it forward with his green eyes gleaming to the sight of the electricity crackling. The electricity made burn marks across the ground before it reached Pika and caused a small explosion that made the electric mouse get up and shake it off as if it was nothing.

The raven haired trainer looked at this and smiled, "No lightning rod, how will you deal with this dad? Thunder once again!"

"Simple," Ashura said as he looked down and ran to the side. "Jump up!" Pika timed his jump perfectly as when he shot up with his own tail, the electricity had already surged from underneath. "Now use iron tail!" Pika made his tail glow white which made Ash start to back away from Goodra knowing things could get dangerous for him as well.

" _And Satoshi easily dodges, what could this mean for the rest of the battle?"_

"PIKA!" Pika shouted as he swung his tail downwards in an attempt to hit Goodra with his definitely powerful steel type attack, but Ash was very well prepared.

The raven haired trainer smirked as he threw his hand at his side with a large smile as he said: "Stop it!" Goodra payed attention as he used his ears to grab ahold of Pika which made Ashura grit his teeth before Ash then narrowed his eyes and pumped his fist. "Now throw him!" Goodra smirked as he swung his ears around and around before then launching the electric mouse into the sky. Ash then looked up and threw his fist into the air while looking up, "Drago meteor!"

"GOOOOOODDRRRRRRAAAA!" Goodra shouted as he made the large ball of orange energy soot upwards and towards the opposing electric mouse. Pika looked surprised as he watched the ball coming closer and in slow motion, it was shown as it nearly missed the front of his face to then go up as the ball of energy then exploded into many meteors that began to fall towards the ground. The stands cheered as they saw how Goodra was putting up so much pressure just with one attack, but then things made a turn when Ashura smiled.

" _And here comes Ash's attack! This seems to be a powerful and well executed Draco Meteor!"_

Ashura put a hand at his side as he looked down, "I have seen you do that a lot Ash, Pika, use iron tail and use the meteors to go up!"

"What?!"

"Pika!" Pika shouted as he made his entire tail glow white and harden as he shot upwards with the use of the meteors to which he swung down and propelled himself into the sky. After clearing all of the meteors, Ash gritted his teeth knowing that Pika now had the entire height advantage and Goodra was too slow to move at all.

'He used the same strategy from the Cyllage City Gym that I used against Grant and his Tyrunt!' Ash then clenched his fists with a lot of power that it made the hand vibrate from the stress. 'He completely read right through it!' Ash then watched as his father commanded his partner to thunder punch. Seeing Pika come down with crackling fists made him smirk, he had seen that before too. "Goodra, use bide and when he comes down, let it go!

"Goo!" Goodra shouted as he looked up and braced himself.

" _Is Ash's strategy here the best one?"_

"PIKA!" Pika landed the powerful attack and struck the larger dragon's chest, which instantly caused a large red aura to form as the electric pokemon then bounced back and landed in front of his trainer.

"GOOODDRRRRAAAA!" Goodra shouted as he made the white beam and propelled it forward with a lot of power. So much in fact that it completely consumed Pika as his bright black eyes shined at the sight of the incoming attack. " **BOOM!"**

"Pika!" Pika cried out loud in pain as he landed on the ground behind his trainer and sank to his knees.

" _And there it is! Goodra's special counter attack has been revealed already, and it seems to have been a very damaging blow!"_

"Pika, are you alright?" Ashura asked as he watched his electric mouse get up again and narrow his eyes. "Good, now how are we going to do this?" Ashura muttered as he watched Goodra closely before then noticing the larger dragon's own weakness: Lack of movement capabilities.

Ash had his fist pumpped, celebrating how Goodra had landed that clearly amazing blow to Pika, but he knew he could not relax because if he lost, then the match would be against him again… And with a battle with his own father that was the last thing that Ash needed…

"Volt tackle!"

"What?" Ash asked in shock as he watched in shock as Pika ran by his right at a blinding speed with an electric aura that even he could feel from a distance. "Oh no," Ash muttered as he then saw his purple dragon being surrounded by an electric ring that was Pika running around him at such a tremendous speed. The raven haired trainer gritted his teeth as he kept his fists clenched: 'There has to be a way to get Goodra out of this situation…'

" _Goodra is completely trapped! What an amazing comeback by Satoshi!"_

Ash then looked on in horror to see his dragon type sinking to his knees. Pikachu looking at the scene in complete horror which mirrored his trainer's as he watched the slimy pokemon beginning to collapse. "Gooo…" Goodra muttered as he fell to his knees further and put his hands on the concrete ground while electricity surged through him.

"What are you going to do now, Ash?" Ash's attention was brought to his father, who was looking at him with crossed arms and a serious expression on his face.

Ash gritted his teeth as he narrowed his eyes. A view of him from the front showed his gleaming serious eyes and his scarf waving madly as he stepped forward and pumped his fingerless glove that contained the glimmering keystone. "I will do what I can do, I won't give up until the end!" Ash then looked at Goodra and smiled, "Goodra, we can do this! Draco Meteor right under you!"

"What?!"

"GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

"Pikachu!"

"RUN!" Ash and Pikachu along with Ashura began running their separate ways as they then turned around with shocked expressions looking back at the battlefield. Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, the raven haired trainer caught a glimpse of an orange orb of energy hitting the ground.

" **BOOM!"**

Ash instantly grabbed Pikachu in his arms and dove right in front of his trainer platform with his eyes closed and not looking back, praying that he would not get hit by the attack. Ashura also did the same by himself hoping that the attack would not hit him at all either.

" **BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!"**

This time separate explosions occurred, the entire stadium watched in complete awe as the meteors shot out in all directions at close proximity to the ground that then collided with anything in its path causing the buildings and the trees to get carried by the meteors in the direction the projectiles were flying in. The worst part was that the arena violently shook as the explosions left a bunch of smoke radiating from the towers and the middle plaza.

 **At the stands:**

Everyone held a very shocked look on their faces obviously knowing that this battle probably just ended in such a brutal way. Night looked on from the top of the stadium from where he was with Jolteon and narrowed his eyes as he looked down at the smoking battlefield. It did not even look like it would settle any time soon as the brown cloud kept going up towards the bright blue sky above.

Tierno, Trevor, Calem, Clemont, and Brock all had speechless expressions as they looked at the field. Serena and Mairin held their pokemon tight but with hopeful expressions wanting Ash to pull through with Goodra, while Bonnie and Shauna were wide eyed and with their mouths covered with their hands.

Professor Sycamore and Diantha both stood looking at the field with wide eyes as they wondered to see the result of the battle which definitely had a very explosive conclusion to it.

 **At the battlefield:**

" _What an explosion! What will be the result of this battle?"_

"Goodra?" Ash asked as he tried to look through the smoke.

"PIKAPI!" Ash heard his Pikachu call out to him with an urgent tone as he darted out of the raven haired trainer's hands. Ash went wide eyed as he then looked back towards the place where the explosion took place and saw how the smoke was clearing to the point that he could now be able to see what happened. When the smoke finally cleared, Ash's jaw dropped: Goodra and Pika were still standing right across from each other, they were definitely breathing hard as their chests showed their panting continuing.

Ash and Ashura both stood behind their pokemon waiting to see if any of them would collapse…

Suddenly, Pika stuttered and sank closer to the ground, but through some strength, the little mouse managed to stay up with a smile while looking back at his trainer.

"Dra…" Goodra muttered as he flinched and began to fall on his side as he lost consciousness. The slimy body of the Kalos pseudo legendary hit the concrete floor completely defeated which made the raven haired trainer recoil and begin to run towards his dragon.

"Goodra!" Ash called out as he ran with Pikachu on his side towards the dragon he had and then kneeled on his side.

"Goodra is unable to battle, Satoshi's Pikachu is the winner! We will now hold a small intermission to change the battlefield since Ash has only three pokemon left!" The referee declared as he raised his hand. The stands began to cheer, but Ash sighed as he comforted his defeated pokemon.

" _And it is over! The first part of the battle is over, and Satoshi is winning with one pokemon on top of Ash!"_

"Goo…" Goodra said as he sat up with his head slouched down.

Ash just smiled as he rubbed his hand across the slimy head of his pokemon. "It is alright," said the raven haired trainer. "Leave the rest to us." Goodra nodded as the Kanto native pulled out his pokeball and recalled the larger pokemon back into his pokeball before then looking back at his Pikachu, who had a worried look on his face, "Don't worry Pikachu," Ash said as he rubbed the electric mouse's head. "I can pull something off, don't worry."

"Pika…" Pikachu conceded as he followed his trainer back to the trainer's platform, opposite of where Ashura was standing waiting for the battle to proceed at his opposite platform as well.

" _There will now be a field change since Ash is down to three pokemon!"_

The younger boy narrowed his eyes as he looked at the descending battlefield. The city was completely leveled after the first part: The sides of the towers were destroyed from upper and lower extremities which contained smoke billowing out from above and there were numerous trees that were on the ground and also in a small blaze of their own. The raven haired trainer had wanted the first part of the battle to go his way, especially with the early advantage he could get a good chance of winning, but now…

It was his dad he was facing, there was no way that he would be an easy opponent, no doubt.

Now that the field was completely gone, there was a large gap separating Ash and his father, which meant that there would have to be a new strategy that Ash would have to use in order to win the next four pokemon. Ash looked up at the scoreboard and looked at how things were going, and he definitely knew he was a little behind at this point:

 **Ash:** _Goodra Noivern Sceptile_ (pokeball) (pokeball) Pikachu

 **Satoshi:** _Aerodactyl Aegislash_ (pokeball) Zoroark Dragonite Pikachu

Still, it intrigued Ash how both he and his dad had to use more than half of their pokemon during the first part of the battle, which just goes on to show the amount of raw power that both teams have. "Pikapi?" Ash looked down towards his electric rodent and smiled as he took a deep breath.

"No doubt this is already a heated battle, but I won't give up, not just yet." Ash then looked across the field at his dad and Pika and smiled. "Hey dad! Let's keep going and enjoy this until the end!"

Ashura looked at his son and smiled as he snickered. 'Battling against my son is definitely something that I would never forget. When was the last time that someone was able to give me this much of a challenge in a battle before? I am definitely looking forward to continuing this.'

 **At the stands:**

"It is a three on four situation, and Ash has the disadvantage, this is really bad," Tierno said as he crossed his arms.

Shauna looked at Tierno and nodded, "Ash is doing decently, but does this mean he even has what it takes to take on this Satoshi guy?"

Calem was silent until he smiled, "I think Ash can try something." Everyone turned to him with a very confused expression. "Look at how Ash is enjoying himself, it is something that means that he is giving it his all and having fun, and that is all that matters in the end."

"And that is Ash's strongest weapon, his trust in his pokemon," Serena finished as he looked at Kapi and smiled at the seemingly disappointed rodent. "Ash will pull something off don't worry."

"Pichu!"

"Go Ash! Go guys go!" Bonnie chanted in her seat.

Mairin hugged Chespie and took a deep breath, "Please Ash, you can do this."

"You know," Clemont said as he looked at Brock. "Up until now, I never would have thought Satoshi would be down two pokemon."

Brock nodded as he looked forward, "I know, but the thing is that it is three on four with Ash at a disadvantage… One mistake could cost anyone the battle at this point, so Ash better be careful with his decision making."

 **At the battlefield:**

A side view of Ash's face shows the raven haired trainer standing tall with his eyes gleaming. He grabbed his hat and pulled it down as he let out a deep breath. 'Now that I am down to only Pikachu, Charizard, and Greninja, I have to be more careful with how I battle, this is going to be one of my biggest challenges yet…'.

The view then zoomed out and rushed through to the other side of the gap to show Ashura narrowing his eyes towards his son. There was a sense of pride in them, but there was also some definite surprise by how well his son was doing against him, something about this battle had his adrenaline and heart pumping it further through his blood vessels. It was just that… Exhilarating.

Encircling the arena, the new battlefield began to reach the height of both trainers and then stopped as it neared the shoes of the trainer's platform. Looking at the field, there seemed to be nothing special about it… In fact, it just looked like a very large rocky ground field with no obstacles or anything on it. Simply, it looked like the most boring battlefield from the entire conference. Ash looked puzzled for a second, it was said that this battlefield would be "special", but it is confusing that the result is something that looked everything but special and unique at all.

" _And the battle will now continue in our special transforming battlefield!"_

"Transforming?" Ash asked himself as he narrowed his eyes. That was when he saw it: Pine trees began to grow as if they were being time lapsed through a couple of decades and grass seemed to just grow. Ashura seemed just as surprised as both trainers from Kanto were separated by a forest. It looked very nice, but then Ash, Pikachu, Ashura, and Pika were taken aback when they felt a blast of cold blow through them like a wind. Suddenly, it was shown that snow began to appear on top of the grass and the trees got coated in a snowy canopy.

" _And the battle will begin in a snowy pines battlefield!"_

The stands roared in approval as Ash narrowed his eyes trying to ignore the cold. He did not sweat it though, if he kept himself moving as he battled, he could definitely not freeze. The referee then spoke up towards both trainers: "Although the field will be occasionally changing, keep in mind that the trainers will now be forced to stay in their trainer boxes for the remainder of the battle, so choose your first pokemon!"

" _You heard it folks, Ash and Satoshi will need to stay back in their trainer platforms for the rest of the battle!"_

"Impressive," Ashura said as he reached into his belt and smiled with sadness. "I never thought that technology would have brought us this far," The man then threw his pokeball forward with gritted teeth and called out to the pokemon he sent out. "Go!"

A large dragon emerged from the flash of light and caused a shockwave as he flexed his muscles and stared at Ash with a determined look. Meanwhile, Ash and Pikachu looked at their opponent and instantly got engulfed in confusion.

"Dragonite again?" The raven haired trainer with the light blue scarf reached into his belt and picked out a pokeball. 'I am going to need a pokemon that can take this one on… And it won't be easy,' Ash then threw the pokeball forward and shouted: "Charizard, I am counting on you!"

The pokeball opened and from it emerged the draconic fire and flying type with a large roar that caused the entire stands to cheer. It was obvious that this was one of Ash's strongest and there was no way that anybody would want to take this pokemon lightly. Charizard's tail stayed brightly lit as the snow around him melted. "GRUAW!" Charizard shouted as he looked at his opponent. "GGGRRRRRUUUUUUAAAWWW!" Charizard roared with a smile as he looked at the challenge that was put in front of him.

" _It will be Dragonite against Charizard! This is going to be quite the amazing battle!"_

 **At the stands:**

"Clemont, did you even know you could make a battlefield like this one?" Brock asked as he turned to the young inventor. "It truly looks amazing."

Clemont slightly blushed as others looked at him, "Well, as a matter of fact I actually had designed the battlefield to change using experimental technology which is supposed to recreate virtual reality, although I didn't think it would work." Clemont said the last part while rubbing the back of his head before then looking back at Ash and Ashura in the battlefield. "I don't understand one thing though."

"You see it too don't you?" Calem said as he crossed his arms. Clemont nodded at this and with a close look, Brock also noticed what the others were talking about quickly followed by Tierno and Trevor, who have a very close perception when it comes to battles in comparison to Serena, Shauna, Bonnie, and Mairin. "The worst part is… I don't think Ash sees _it_ yet."

 **At the battlefield:**

"Let the battle, BEGIN!" The referee exclaimed as he resumed the battle.

Ashura moved first when he put his hand out and pumped his fist with the other, "Use flamethrower!" Dragonite, who was standing in front of his trainer, shot the flames forward towards the fire type going at a fast speed that looked like they were causing the snow to melt under the fire. Ash narrowed his eyes as he commanded for nothing as he watched the flames come closer.

"Take it."

That was all that Ash commanded as he watched Charizard brace himself. "Gruaw…." Charizard muttered as he put his claws forward and interacted them with the flames to the point that that the orange embers split around the Kanto starter's torso and head. "Grauw!" Charizard exclaimed smirking at his opponent clearly loving the idea of him taking on a Dragonite.

" _What a way to take a flamethrower!"_

"Now Charizard, fly!" Ash shouted as he pointed at the sunny sky above. The fire type nodded and leaped upwards as he flew above the trees and looked down towards Dragonite, who was apparently looking up and not flying. 'Why is he not flying? I need Dragonite airborne in order for this to work!' Ash mentally shouted as he gritted his teeth and then shook his head trying to knock the weird thought out of his head. "Dive in and use dragon claw!" Ash shouted as he crushed his open hand into a fist in front of him. Charizard obeyed as he made his two pairs of glowing green claws and began to shoot downwards towards the dragon below.

"GRUAW!"

"Wait for it…" Ashura muttered as he watched Charizard get closer to Dragonite. As soon as he saw his opening he put his fist out, "Jump up!" Dragonite instantly reacted and got into the air above Charizard, who slammed his claws into the ground and caused snow to pick up. Pointing forward, Ashura then shocked Ash by his next command: "Sludge bomb!"

"WHAT?"

Dragonite formed the large purple sphere in his hands that then got thrusted forward towards the unknowing fire type below. "Gruaw!" Charizard shouted in pain as he got hit and got enveloped in a purple aura while holding onto the snow with his hands. Ash gritted his teeth as soon as he figured out that the risk of getting poisoned was high if things kept up this way, but there had to be a way to make sure that he was not battling against what he thought he was.

" _Satoshi has just landed quite a powerful sludge bomb, Charizard is lucky to not be poisoned!"_

"Night slash!"

Dragonite made his claw glow a purple and dark color before then beginning to fall down towards Charizard. Ash put a hand to his side with a determined look on his face as he narrowed his eyes. "Charizard get above Dragonite!" Charizard looked up and saw the incoming attack and before Dragonite even knew what was happening, The fire and flying type was right in front of him and grabbed ahold of him. Ash then pumped his fist as he commanded the next part with a large smirk on his face. "Throw him down with seismic toss!"

"GRUAW!" Charizard exclaimed as he one handed spun around and threw Dragonite like a bullet straight down. The ground shattered a little when Dragonite landed only to show a bright purple glow and as soon as the dust settled, Charizard was disappointed to find that Zoroark was in the ground where Dragonite just was. "Gruaw…"

" _Unbelievable, it seems that Satoshi has completely deceived Ash with using Zoroark again!"_

"I knew it had to be Zoroark, how could I have fallen for that again? I misjudged the pokemon I should have chosen..." Ash mentally muttered to himself as he then pointed forward and gave out his next command. "Charizard use thunder punch!" Charizard made his fist glow with a crackling electric aura and then charged down towards the ground with a swift speed that made Ash believe that the hit would definitely come in contact.

"Night daze!"

"ZORA!" Zoroark made a wave of purple and black energy dissipate in all directions thus causing Charizard to get pushed back further into the air above the forest, which made Ash flinch in shock.

"Now jump up there and use night slash again!"

"Dragon claw!"

"Gruaw!" Charizard surprisingly shouted seeing Zoroark just above him with a purple blade on his hand and about to slash down. The fire and flying type made his green claws and tried to upper cut, but Zoroark was there instantly and began to use his blade to push Charizard down via the claws. Landing on the ground, the explosion made Ash look at the battle with a grit of his teeth and while covering his eyes with his arms in order to avoid the debris.

"Oh no Charizard!"

"Pikachu!"

" _What a powerful move! What can Ash do at this point?"_

"Gruaw…" Charizard muttered as he slowly stood up breathing hard and stood across from a Zoroark that was smirking and grasping the snow with his hand.

Seeing his pokemon in this state made Ash grab Charizard's pokeball from his belt and recall the flying type. "Don't worry, you will get a better shot next time, take a good rest."

" _Ash decided to swap out Charizard, this Zoroark is really a pain to take down!"_

"So you decided to not use Charizard to take on my Zoroark?" Ashura asked with one of his hands on his hips. "What is your next pick?"

Ash grabbed another pokeball from his belt and thrusted it forward, "Greninja let's go!" Ash shouted as the water and dark type pokemon shot out of the pokeball and appeared right in front of the raven haired trainer with his arms crossed and his tongue around his neck and behind his head. "Greninja, let's give this everything we've got!" Ash exclaimed as he pumped his fist to the water ninja pokemon that was in front of him.

Looking around, Greninja noticed that the snowy pine battlefield resembled the place where him and Ash first learned to control their power. "Ninja…" Greninja said as he had the flashback to the moment where he took on the three Weaviles as a Frogadier and then took on a jump from a cliff to save Serena and Kapi. "Gren!" Greninja shouted as he put his hands at his sides.

" _And Ash's next and last fresh pokemon is Greninja!"_

 **At the stands:**

"Greninja," Calem said as he looked at it. "It looks like Ash might actually have a chance if he uses that transformation."

"I would not count on that," Clemont said. "The only way that Ash can win it is if he does it correctly, if Satoshi finds a way to completely disable the Ash-Greninja transformation, then Greninja might not win the battle for Ash."

"Don't worry guys," Everyone's attention was brought to Serena, who was holding Kapi with a smirk on her face. "Ash will pull through, I know he will!"

"PiCHU!"

Mairin narrowed her eyes while she looked onto the field, she still had an uneasy feeling about what was going on, but she knew she had to keep her confidence as she held Chespie. "Greninja won last time, so this time he can do it too!"

"Right! GO ASH!" Bonnie shouted from her seat to the right of her while pumping her fist into the sky. The atmosphere with all of the cheering had not calmed down as the stands prepared for the next battle.

Professor Sycamore and Diantha were also looking down at the battle, but they noticed that Ash was definitely having a terrible disadvantage, especially if he took a lot of damage with Greninja. "I don't like this," Professor Sycamore said which got Diantha's attention. "For Ash," The professor's eyes then looked onto the opposing trainer to which he gave a quizzical expression. "The guy that Ash is battling against right now has four pokemon and one is completely rested too. Ash has to ration out his power because Greninja is his last fresh one."

"I see what you mean, this is definitely starting to show who the winner is," Diantha said as she looked at Ashura. "Satoshi's pokemon are very powerful that even I don't know if anyone can overcome it. From the looks of it though, the match seems like it has already been won."

 **At the battlefield:**

"Start this off with night daze!" Ashura shouted as he pumped his fist. The scene zoomed back as it showed Zoroark charging up dark energy around him before then extending his arms and shooting it forward towards the opposing Greninja. The attack was shown getting closer to the sinister water type, but Ash made his move at the right moment.

"Dodge it!"

"NINJA!" Greninja shouted as he jumped high into the air, overlooking the snowy canopy of the forest. The energy had gone in a wave like motion and disappeared just before it his Ash. Greninja narrowed his red eyes as he prepared himself to go in for the next attack.

"Now cut through those trees with aqua blade!" Ash exclaimed as he was shown putting his hand out. Greninja made his dark blue kunais and began to spin around like a tornado which cause one of the trees to be slashed by a blue trail and then begin to fall to its side completely making Ashura flinch. In slow motion, Greninja was shown with his kunais at his sides while they glinted at the sun light. "Water shuriken!" Ash shouted as his eyes gleamed and then the trainer reached for his legs mimicking the water types motion.

" _And Ash is switching back into the offensive!"_

Greninja made the ninja stars and threw them forward in a very fast manner that made it through half way across the field in less than a second. Ashura was shown extending his arm as he made his next call: "Night slash!"

"ZORA!" Zoroark exclaimed as he slashed down on the blue ninja stars with his purple blades thus causing a lot of smoke to appear from all directions.

"Use aerial ace!" Ash shouted as he put his fists at his sides.

Greninja made his way through the smoke with a white glowing fist as he then reached the dark type fox and upper cutted the jaw. "JA!"

"Roark!"

"GrenNINJA!" Greninja kicked the bridge of Zoroark's nose and caused the fox to get knocked back as the water type landed in front of Ash with a serious look on his face.

Ashura gritted his teeth as he punched the air in front of him and made his next attack: "Flamethrower!" Greninja took the hit directly as the flames somewhat burned the snow from the actual ground to a crisp. "Now use night slash!"

"Use aqua blade!"

Both pokemon shot forward and with their dominant hands made their attacks collide. Greninja's dark blue kunais against Zoroark's purple blades. The attacks stayed at a stalemate as it caused bright green sparks that then turned into a shockwave that caused Ash and Ashura's clothes to wave around, the former's scarf madly shaking as the two pokemon then split back up and landed in front of their trainers.

"Now Zoroark," Ashura's voice echoed through the air as Ash looked around to see that Zoroark had mysteriously vanished. "Make things interesting with an illusion and conceal yourself."

" _What is going on? What is this black wall that is starting to encase the field?"_

"Ninja?" Greninja asked slightly panicked as he looked around. Ash gasped as he noticed that the cheers from the stands had completely disappeared to be now on a floating abyss in the middle of nowhere. Looking around, behind him was just a large black void and in front of him was the arena in which he stood in his trainer platform, but Pikachu was also gone.

Ash looked forward and saw his water type in front of him, "Greninja, relax!" The sinister water type looked at Ash and nodded as he put on a defensive stance. "Now, Dad, what the heck are you doing?"

"Just making things fun Ash, defeat it and you will have definitely passed my test," The voice echoed as Ash looked around.

"Ugh," the raven haired trainer said as he then took a deep breath. "Alright, Greninja let's try something, make a lot of copies with double team and let's try and deceive Zoroark!" Greninja nodded as he made his ninja pose before splitting off into a lot of Greninja that completely covered the snowy battlefield and every corner even on the tree branches.

"Sludge bomb!" That was what was heard as the copies begun to disappear from purple toxic orbs being shot at from random directions until eventually the only one that was there was left was the original Greninja, who was struck in the chest with the powerful attack.

"GREN!" Greninja exclaimed in pain as he landed in front of Ash.

Ash flinched as he looked at the pokemon in front of him, "Greninja no!" Greninja tried to get up, but as he did, purple bubbles escaped the nostrils of the ninja and purple sparks appeared. "Poison, agh… Greninja come on get up!"

Greninja got back up to his feet, but with a lot of strain due to how bad the poison was. "Greninja…" Greninja muttered as he panted hard.

"So Ash, what will you do now, are you done?" Ashura asked through his illusion.

Ash clenched his fists as he closed his eyes while shadowing his eyes. He was alone… There was no Brock, no Clemont, no Bonnie, no Mairin, no Trevor, no Tierno, no Shauna, no Calem, not even Pikachu… No one.. And the worst part was that Greninja was in pain, because of him…

He was failing…

It was over…

It was just time to embrace the darkness.

"I think I…"

"I what?" The voice asked with a taunting tone.

"I… Give-" Ash took a deep breath as he froze in spot with his hands going into his pockets and as he did that, he came in contact with the fabric that was in his pocket, the symbolic item that someone had given to him just before this battle.

Ash flinched as his eyes gleamed and his mouth went agape: He had a quick flashback of a certain honey blonde haired girl that he knew since he was a child slapping him and throwing snowballs at him in a snowy forest, like the one he was battling in right now. It was a brief flashback, but then it went into something more incredible: The moment just before this battle where she did something that made his heart burn with passion and the desire to move on. He was not alone, _she was always there for him!_

Ash gritted his teeth as he gripped his cap and flipped it from side to side. "Greninja, get up!" Ash exclaimed as he made a blue aura surround him. The aura then traveled and reached Greninja, where it made the water type have a green glow before looking forward. "This, this battle is not one that I will ever give up on, I won't ever give up, not until my team and _I_ go down!" Greninja also had the blue aura as both trainer and pokemon pushed ther hands to their sides. "I will defeat you!"

"NINJA!"

" **SHATTER!"** the dark void that surrounded both trainers shattered into a million pieces which revealed Pikachu, Pika, Ashura, Zoroark, stands, spectators, a loud cheering roar, and an arena: they were back in the battlefield and the Zoroark and opposing trainer had been in front of them the whole time.

" _And the dark walls are gone, what happened in there?!"_

"Use flamethrower!" Ashura exclaimed with an amused look on his face as he threw his fist forward. Zoroark did not hesitate to shoot the barrage of flames through the forest again as he made the attack bigger than ever.

" _Here comes a devastating flamethrower! Satoshi will be making Ash have a bad time if it hits!"_

Ash looked on with a serious face as he crossed his arms in front of his face and shouted: "Water shuriken!" Greninja mimicked his trainer's movements as he held two shurikens in his hands. " **CHING!"** That was the sound that the shurikens made as they glew white and made their edges razor sharp with white spikes.

" _MY OH MY! Look at those water shurikens! They look really powerful!"_

"GREN!" Greninja shouted as he crossed his arms and then uncrossed them to shoot the two stars forward. "GRENINJA!" The two attacks collided, but the shurikens contained a blue aura that made a blue trail that caused the flamethrower to be completely pushed back and then cause Zoroark's eyes to gleam as the attack came closer and closer…

" **BOOM!"**

" _What an explosion! Does Ash have an opening to do something?"_

"Zora…" Zoroark looked up with one of his hands on the ground. The dust settled around him and then Ash saw his perfect opportunity.

"Finish him! Aqua blade!" Ash shouted while smiling and swiping a fist across the front of his face.

"NINJA!" Greninja shouted as he made an "X" fashioned cut that sliced through Zoroark. The water type appeared behind the illusion fox as he landed with a knee on the ground and while his blades turned into water that dripped from his hands back down to the snow below.

"Zora…" Zoroark muttered as he fell forward and ended up making an imprint on the snow.

The referee looked at the dark type and nodded as he raised his hand: "Zoroark is unable to battle, Greninja wins!"

The cheers from the crowd seemed to rival those of a jet engine as the news of the result of the battle broke out. It was at this moment that things were definitely getting interesting: Both trainers down to three pokemon, it was even again.

" _AMAZING! Ash managed to make it even again!"_

 **At the stands:**

"YES! Alright Ash! Good job Greninja!" Bonnie shouted as she got to the edge of her seat and threw her fist into the air. Mairin, who was next to her had a satisfied expression as she looked back down towards the field and saw how Ash was talking enthusiastically with Greninja and Pikachu, who was on the trainer's shoulder.

The others had extremely surprised expressions seeing how Ash managed to make it through such a mysterious battle. It was weird because they did not get to see anything after the black walls appeared, but the finish of the battle was clearly breathtaking for anyone that was supporting Ash in winning this, specially after he was down by one. Shifting her look to the other side of the stadium, Serena saw as Ashura recalled her Zoroark back into his pokeball while Pika looked at the battlefield eyeing someone near Ash…

"Pichu…" Kapi began to get very uneasy as she looked at the battlefield begin to change once again. This time the trees glowed blue as they shrunk back down into the ground. As soon as the trees made a nice plain battlefield with plants around it forming. As soon as the blue glow disappeared, it was seen that the battlefield was now a complete grass field. Serena though, she noticed that Kapi was beginning to spark electricity in her cheeks.

"Serena, is Kapi alright?" Shauna asked as she looked a the restless electric type in the lap of the honey blonde girl.

Serena looked back at the field and then back at her electric mouse clearly knowing that what was next was definitely going to be a very interesting. "I think I know what is going on," Brock interrupted before the young performer could speak up thus gaining the attention of everyone sitting. "I think it has to do with the fact that Satoshi's Pikachu seems to be challenging _someone_ to a battle." Everyone looked at the field and as soon as they saw the electricity sparking from the electric mouse Ashura had, it was clear that things were about to get very electric.

Clemont looked at the potential matchup and adjusted the glare of his glasses, at the same time, his body started to feel restless, the excitement was starting to catch up to him.

At the other side of the stadium, Night looked down at the battlefield and then back at his restless Jolteon. "You feel it too right?"

"Jol… Jolteon!"

The spiky haired trainer narrowed his eyes as he looked back down, "Electric, just the way I like it…"

 **At the battlefield:**

"CHUUUUUUUUUU!" Ash flinched as he saw an explosion envelop the center of the battlefield. As soon as the dust cleared, a Pikachu with slightly spiky hair appeared looking at the trio standing at the opposite end. Ash noticed that Pika was looking right at his shoulder while smirking.

" _Whoa, it seems that Satoshi's Pikachu is challenging Ash's Pikachu to a battle!"_

"Pikachu," Ash said as he looked at his electric mouse. Pikachu was fired up as he sparked electricity from his cheeks and jumped down from his trainer's shoulder to be on the trainer platform below. Looking back at Greninja, Ash took the water types pokeball and materialized him into red energy that retreated back into the device he was holding. Then, looking at the battlefield, Ash pointed forward, "Pikachu, I choose you!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he jumped from the platform back into the grassy battlefield while sparking electricity in his cheeks. "Pikachu!" Pikachu roared the last part while looking upwards and shooting electricity in all directions at a safe distance that caused the opposing electric mouse to be impressed instantly.

"Alright dad, let's do this, your Pikachu against mine," Ash exclaimed as he smirked and pumping his fist.

Ashura smirked as he adjusted his cap and nodded.

" _And it is going to happen, Ash against Satoshi, Pikachu against Pikachu, this will be very interesting!"_

At the same time, the referee raised his hand and lowered his hand while allowing the battle to resume which started with Ash putting his hand forward with his fingers spread out: "Pikachu start things off with thunderbolt!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted with a smile as he charged up the electricity which made an electric aura around him. The electric mouse then shot the bolt forward and made the grass crackle as the electricity passed right through it. The opposing trainer smirked as he watched his Pikachu getting approached by the electricity before he made his move.

Swiping his hand across his torso, Ashura exclaimed his command: "Dodge it!" Pika ran forward and without much effort jumped over the electric beam and spun around it before then going in a running motion towards Ash's Pikachu. The electric mouse was then given the command to use volt tackle which caused him to glow in yellow electricity as he shot forward like a bullet.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted as he landed with one of his hands on the ground.

"Quick attack!" Ash shouted as zooming out of him showed the raven haired trainer putting his arms out. Pikachu made his body have a white outline as he began to shoot forward in an attempt to reach his opponent. The two pokemon closed the gap between a second and the result was a large shockwave that went in both directions that caused Ash and Ashura to both cover themselves up as Pikachu and Pika landed in front of their respective trainers with smiles on their faces. "Alright, let's keep up the fire and use your tail to get airborne!"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted as he bent his tail and then flung himself upwards quickly with an attempt to get airborne. Ashura looked in awe as Pikachu reached an immense height, but it then was more surprised by Ash's next command:

Ash looked up and with a smile and his eyes gleaming with passion, he made a seemingly amazing move: "Pikachu, use iron tail and spin towards the battlefield!" Pikachu smirked as he made his tail glow white and harden before he started spinning like a top. As soon as he hit the battlefield, Pika and Ashura were surprised to see that Pikachu cut right through the grass and made a hole in the ground. "What do you think about this, kind of like if Pikachu knew dig."

" _I have never seen anything like it! Ash's Pikachu used his tail like a drill!"_

"Impressive, but that does not mean anything, Pika use iron tail on the battlefield!" Ashura retaliated as he put his arm out.

Ash smirked at this as he then narrowed his eyes, "Pikachu, thunderbolt all around you!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUU!"

At first it was not so noticeable, but as soon as Pika swung his white tail around and hit the ground, it didn't cause damage, but instead Pika got repelled back with electricity following him into the air. "Pika, are you alright?" Ashura asked as he noticed his Pikachu get up with a little bit of difficulty.

"Pika!"

"Alright, then thunderbolt on that hole!"

Pika jumped into the sky and then fired an electrical current through the air which landed in the hole which caused a small explosion to appear in the middle of the battlefield from which Pikachu was ejected. "Pika!" Pikachu shouted in pain as he fell in front of his trainer with a great deal of damage marks around his body.

"Oh no, Pikachu!" Ash shouted as Pikachu landed in front of him with a difficulty getting up. "Pikachu, get up, I know you can do this!"

"Pika…" Pikachu muttered as he stood up in all fours and looked forward.

" _Amazing, and Satoshi manages to find a way to completely draw Ash's Pikachu out of hiding!"_

Ashura looked impressed as he smirked and looked forward, "Your Pikachu has truly given it all he's got, I have never seen such a persistent one before… But I am going to end this fast, Pika use thunderbolt!"

Ash gritted his teeth as he then put a hand at his side and spoke up, "Pikachu as more in him than just this!" Ash then threw his fist in front of him. "Dodge it and then run at him!" Pikachu narrowed his eyes and jumped, avoiding the electric shock that had hit the ground and then under the dust began to charge his opponent.

Ashura gritted his teeth as he put his hand forward and with his other arm pumped his fist, "Use iron tail!"

"Give him a taste of your iron tail Pikachu!"

"Pi…. KAAAAAA!" Pikachu shouted as he came closer and closer with his tail glowing white as he jumped into the air and swung it forward with all of his might, his black eyes gleaming a silvery color as he came in contact with the opposing iron tail. "Ka pika! Pikachu!" Pikachu interacted with Pika's iron tail to the left and to the right, but eventually, Pikachu got hit under the jaw and fell on his back feeling the pain. "Pika!" There was an echo of pain when Pikachu hit the ground which made Ash grit his teeth and clench his fist.

"Use thunderbolt!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUU!" Pika shouted as he made a crackling beam of electricity shoot forward through the ground and zigzag on his way to hit the opposing electric mouse at a fast pace.

Ash noticed Pikachu moving a little and then put his hand forward while remembering a technique that he had recently used, "Make a dust cloud with the ground!" Pikachu shot open his eyes and got back to his feet before then punching it, thus causing the dust to conceal the electric mouse and completely dissipate Pika's electricity in all direction. Ash then swung his fist around as he made the next call: "Electric overdrive!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he roared. A closeup of his eye showed it gleaming as he made rain clouds overhead begin to make it pour all over the grassy field. "PIKACHUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu shouted as he then punched the battlefield and begin to approach Pika, who was at the opposite end of the ground that was surging with electricity and shooting forward.

"Intercept it! Thunderbolt on the ground!" Ashura exclaimed as he put his hand forward. Pika grabbed the ground and with the power of electricity, began to give shocks into the ground that caused the electric overdrive to switch directions and narrowly miss while causing small explosions around the battlefield. As soon as the dust cleared, both Pikachus were shown in a staredown, breathing hard wanting to not fall for their trainers.

" _And Satoshi stops electric overdrive with a thunderbolt! This is such an amazing battle!"_

 **Alola:**

"This is so intense," Kiawe said as he crossed his arms. "Look at Satoshi's hand though, that has to be a Z ring." Leaning closer towards the screen, the tanned person noticed that Ashura was wearing a special Z crystal too. "No way!"

Hau noticed Kiawe's alarmed state and soon enough everyone did too. "What is it?" Hau asked.

Kiawe narrowed his eyes, "This is about to get interesting…"

Mallow looked at the battlefield watching Ash and Pikachu looking completely worn out, but it was not over, not until the very end was it that both of them would stop fighting. Kukui and the other classmates also noticed Ash's radiating spirit and passion that he was battling with as they watched the battle continue…

 **At the stands:**

"This is bad, Satoshi's Pikachu is definitely getting the edge here," Tierno remarked as he looked forward.

Trevor seemed to catch onto how the battle was going too as he remembered when he battled Pikachu as well, "Electric Overdrive is very devastating, but the way that Satoshi avoided it was amazing, this guy is really though."

Kapi was getting even more restless on Serena's arms as she looked down at Pikachu with worry. "CHU PI!"

"Kapi relax," Serena said which calmed the female Pichu. "Look, I know it may not look good, but I know he can pull this off, it is possible." Kapi became inspired by this, more so that she began to cheer harder as she looked forward.

"Go Ash! Go Pikachu!" Bonnie continuously shouted trying to beat the cheering crowd of the arena, but it was clearly not going to happen by how many people were there. Also, it was evident that the rain was making things a little harder to see, but our heroes had the perfect seats in that the rain was not causing too much of a blockage to view the actual battle.

 **At the battlefield:**

 **The Lion- Hollywood Undead**

 _I am a lion and I want to be free..._

Pikachu gritted his teeth as he collected electricity on his cheeks, his legs covered in mud and his fur soaked by the water pouring down. "PIKACHU!" _Do you see a lion when you look inside of me…_

 _Outside the window just to watch you as you sleep, I am a lion born from things you cannot be…_

Ash put his hand out and shouted his next move: "Quick attack!"

 _How can I sleep in with this roar inside my head? I found a lion hidden right beneath my bed..._

"Volt tackle!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUUU!" Both auras collided in the middle of the field with more intensity than ever even causing Ash's scarf to shake as he shielded his eyes from the explosion.

 _I will not hide myself from the tears that you have shed…._

Both Pika and Pikachu fell back in front of their trainers with a lot of pain while sinking to their knees. Both trainers called out to them, but it seemed like it was the end…

' _Cus I am a lion and…._

 _You_

 _Are_

 _Dead…_

" **Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!"** Both electric mice used thunderbolt on themselves at the same time, trying to wave themselves up this gaining extremely large electric auras around them which caused the arena to roar and Ash and Ashura to look at their partners in complete surprise.

 _Here's a story of everything we'll ever be, you can hide but some of us can never leave._

 _And if you go, I don't need those little things…_

 _They remind me of all out little dreams…_

 _Can you hear the words, all I can say, we can watch the world even if you walk away…_

 _Forget about tomorrow, tomorrow is today:_

 _ **You were born a lion and a lion you will stay!**_

"IRON TAIL!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu and Kapi ended up in a stalemate as they fought for dominance, neither giving a budge as they caused a huge shockwave in the middle of the field. Ash and Ashura had to conceal their faces as their electrified friends battled as if they had just came out of the pokemon center, the explosions and shockwaves were so powerful that Ash's scarf was beginning to strangle him by how hard it was shaking.

 _I am a lion and I want to be free! Do you see a lion when you look inside of meeeeeee!_

"Now use volt tackle!" Ashura shouted as he put his arm out.

"Pika…" Pika shouted as he enveloped himself in an electric aura before then shooting forward like a rocket.

Ash narrowed his eyes, so impressed by how powerful iron tail was before that he decided to intercept with it: "Iron tail! Stop him in his tracks!"

 _Outside the window just to watch you as you sleep!_

"Pika… CHUPI!" " **BOOM!"** The shockwave echoed through the stadium as Pikachu held his ground against Pika. Pkachu's eyes were gleaming yellow by the sparks flying from the collision which then caused a large repelling force that drove Pikachu to slide on the ground with his right arm halting him in front of Ash.

Both trainers were then showed, Ashura on the left and Ash on the right: Both moving their heads and mouths while screaming their next command in unison: "Use thunderpunch! Use iron tail!"

' _Cus I am a lion born from things you cannot be!_ _ **Instrumental solo kicks in.**_ Both Pikachu and Pika began to hit each other with their attacks, Pika used his crackling fists against Pikachu's glowing steel tail. Both pokemon struggled to hit their opponents while they kept swinging and swinging.

"KA!" Thunderpunch hit hard on iron tail.

"Chu…" Pikachu's tail returned back to normal color and stiffness.

"KAAACHHUUUUUUUU!" Pika shouted as the punch came closer and closer to Pikachu.

"PIKACHU!" Pikachu squealed in pain as he skidded across the mud and ended up in front of Ash with gritted teeth while trying to stay upright.

"Now…." Ashura said as he revealed his glowing Z ring before beginning to shake with excitement before looking forward and thrusting both of his arms and fists forward: " **TEN MILLION VOLT THUNDERBOLT!"**

"Pika…" Pika shouted as he began to glow with electricity before then spreading out his hands and thus causing six different orbs to appear. All six orbs were different colors, all from the rainbow, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple. The orbs had electric sparks coming from them as they got prepared to shoot forward. The orbs were growing bigger and bigger, definitely something that looked fearsome to many trainers. "Pika pika pika pika…" Pika chanted as he got ready to unleash his gargantuan attack.

Ash looked at the incoming attack and his face instantly became pale, his eyes changed from auburn to gray: It was fear, but mostly panic. Looking down, shadowing his eyes and taking a deep breath, the raven haired trainer gritted his teeth, looked up and with the color back to his face and gleaming eyes, punched the ground with all his might as he exclaimed his next attack: " **DENKI OBADORAIBU!"**

"Pika…" Pikachu shouted as the earth shattered beneath him. The electric mouse then developed a large cloaking and crackling aura of electricity as he punched the ground like his trainer. As soon as Pikachu's fist made contact with the ground, the earth under Pikachu shattered as the electric earth began to move towards Pika. "PIKA… CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUU!" Pika shouted as he mimicked his trainer's movement and shot the electricity forward with his arms stretched outwards.

The attacks crossed each other, the air consumed by the multicolored electricity while the earth was breaking apart with a shocking gaps menacing to consume anything. The scene then shifted between the views of both Pikachu's faces as the attack came closer, the colors of the rainbow appearing in the eyes of Pikachu while the color of electricity approaching Pika.

" **Pew…. BOOOOMMM!"**

 _ **Music ends...**_

Two giant orbs where the Pikachu were standing formed, one multicolored while the other one had a pale yellow color, but both were crackling in electricity. Suddenly, the orbs shattered in all directions causing the people in the stands to feel the shockwave from the arena while the electricity dissipated all throughout the stadium causing the hexagonal lights to flicker and the scoreboard to flicker on and off as well.

 **At the stands:**

Everyone looked at the battlefield with their jaws dropping open. The explosion rung all throughout the arena and they were shocked to see the result of the battle. Kapi also had a very worried look on her face as she screamed into the silent stadium: "PICHU!"

Diantha and Professor Sycamore could not believe their eyes as they watched the smoke begin to clear. Their mouths were wide open and they had completely shocked expressions in their faces. Diantha also had her hand up to her keystone, the power portrayed by both trainers at that moment could rival, no… It was more powerful than any explosion she had ever caused in a battle throughout her entire champion career.

Night looked at the battlefield with his mouth hanging somewhat open, but he was completely wide eyed and in awe as to what had happened. He had battled Ashura before, but causing that large of a catastrophe was not something he had ever imagined was possible by anything other than a legendary pokemon. Similarly to his trainer, Jolteon had wide eyes and was looking with complete enthusiasm towards the field to see what was the result of this incredible battle as the smoke cleared by the help of the rain that was still raining on the field.

Malva and her camera crew also looked towards the field in shock. The Elite Four reporter was delivering the news of what happened to the news so that it could get broadcasted to people that were watching through television. Still, Malva had shock in her voice as she spoke towards the shaken up camera crew.

 **Alola:**

Everyone in the classroom was dead silent when they watched the collision of the super charged electric move and the colossal Z move. As they waited for the smoke to clear, Hau looked towards his wrist and then back at the screen, there was no way possible in his mind that he could have ever imagined Ash's Pikachu to rival a Z move with a normal move, but of course that was just what he had witnessed.

Lana and Mallow looked with worried expressions towards the screen, the blue haired girl had her hand covering her mouth while the young cook next to her had wide eyes.

"What happened…?" Professor Kukui dared ask only to see that the smoke was starting to clear.

 **At the battlefield:**

Ash and Ashura looked up from their trainer platform after having been covering their bodies from the explosions. Looking through the smoke that was being cleared by the rain, the raven haired trainer noticed that there was one pokemon standing, barely, and another one on the ground completely defeated.

Both trainers gasped as the air got clearer and clearer to reveal who was defeated after that exchange.

The scene froze showing Ash and Ashura across from each other performing battle poses, both with a Pikachu next to each other while Ash has Charizard and Greninja next to him… Ashura, he has a Dragonite and another shadowed out pokemon that has not been revealed yet.

 **A/N: By the way "DENKI OBADORAIBU" means "ELECTRIC OVERDRIVE" in Japanese. Denki means electric in Japanese, and if you say "Obadoraibu" the right way, then it kind of sounds like "Overdrive", hear it? Anyways, the ending was somewhat of an epic ending to the second part of the battle.**

 **Who won? Was it Pikachu? Or Pika?**

 **Who is the shadowed pokemon that Ashura has?**

 **Answers will be revealed next time!**

 **Remember to R & R and I will see you guys next time!**


	52. Chapter 52

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait. I have been busy. Being a Biomedical Engineering Pre-Med major at a University is very time consuming so I probably should have warned you guys for the long wait. This is the second to last chapter of this book in the fic, expect a sequel pretty soon :)!**

 **Alright guys, so I did not even want to put anything before the author's note because I know there is so much hype to wait as to how the entire league will end and who will come out on top as the champion of the Kalos League.**

 **So, to warn you guys: If by any chance you have to throw your keyboard through the computer screen, at least know that the real Kalos League would have hurt more than a flimsy fic.**

 **As to who will win the battle? It will be revealed in this chapter…**

 **I hope you guys have enjoyed the battling arc of the entire Kalos League, so I know that the future of the fic will hopefully contain many more amazing battles to come!**

 **Without further ado, I will like to see you guys at the bottom… Hopefully in one piece xD!**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or "The Resistance"**

 **WARNING:** **LONGEST CHAPTER I HAVE EVER WRITTEN! OVER 14.6k WORDS LONG**

Chapter 52- Ash's Ultimate Faceoff! A Supernatural Conclusion!

 **At the battlefield:**

Both Pikachu and Pika began to hit each other with their attacks, Pika used his crackling fists against Pikachu's glowing steel tail. Both pokemon struggled to hit their opponents while they kept swinging and swinging.

"KA!" Thunderpunch hit hard on iron tail.

"Chu…" Pikachu's tail returned back to normal color and stiffness.

"KAAACHHUUUUUUUU!" Pika shouted as the punch came closer and closer to Pikachu.

"PIKACHU!" Pikachu squealed in pain as he skidded across the mud and ended up in front of Ash with gritted teeth while trying to stay upright.

"Now…." Ashura said as he revealed his glowing Z ring before beginning to shake with excitement before looking forward and thrusting both of his arms and fists forward: " **TEN MILLION VOLT THUNDERBOLT!"**

"Pika…" Pika shouted as he began to glow with electricity before then spreading out his hands and thus causing six different orbs to appear. All six orbs were different colors, all from the rainbow, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple. The orbs had electric sparks coming from them as they got prepared to shoot forward. The orbs were growing bigger and bigger, definitely something that looked fearsome to many trainers. "Pika pika pika pika…" Pika chanted as he got ready to unleash his gargantuan attack.

Ash looked at the incoming attack and his face instantly became pale, his eyes changed from auburn to gray: It was fear, but mostly panic. Looking down, shadowing his eyes and taking a deep breath, the raven haired trainer gritted his teeth, looked up and with the color back to his face and gleaming eyes, punched the ground with all his might as he exclaimed his next attack: " **DENKI OBADORAIBU!"**

"Pika… Pikachu shouted as he earth shattered beneath him. The electric mouse then developed a large cloaking and crackling aura of electricity as he punched the ground like his trainer. As soon as Pikachu's fist made contact with the ground, the earth under Pikachu shattered as the electric earth began to move towards Pika. "PIKA… CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!"

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUU!" Pika shouted as he mimicked his trainer's movement and shot the electricity forward with his arms stretched outwards.

The attacks crossed each other, the air consumed by the multicolored electricity while the earth was breaking apart with a shocking gaps menacing to consume anything. The scene then shifted between the views of both Pikachu's faces as the attack came closer, the colors of the rainbow appearing in the eyes of Pikachu while the color of electricity approaching Pika.

" **Pew…. BOOOOMMM!"**

Two giant orbs where the Pikachu were standing formed, one multicolored while the other one had a pale yellow color, but both were crackling in electricity. Suddenly, the orbs shattered in all directions causing the people in the stands to feel the shockwave from the arena while the electricity dissipated all throughout the stadium causing the hexagonal lights to flicker and the scoreboard to flicker on and off as well.

 **At the stands:**

Everyone looked at the battlefield with their jaws dropping open. The explosion rung all throughout the arena and they were shocked to see the result of the battle. Kapi also had a very worried look on her face as she screamed into the silent stadium: "PICHU!"

Diantha and Professor Sycamore could not believe their eyes as they watched the smoke begin to clear. Their mouths were wide open and they had completely shocked expressions in their faces. Diantha also had her hand up to her keystone, the power portrayed by both trainers at that moment could rival, no… It was more powerful than any explosion she had ever caused in a battle throughout her entire champion career.

Night looked at the battlefield with his mouth hanging somewhat open, but he was completely wide eyed and in awe as to what had happened. He had battled Ashura before, but causing that large of a catastrophe was not something he had ever imagined was possible by anything other than a legendary pokemon. Similarly to his trainer, Jolteon had wide eyes and was looking with complete enthusiasm towards the field to see what was the result of this incredible battle as the smoke cleared by the help of the rain that was still raining on the field.

Malva and her camera crew also looked towards the field in shock. The Elite Four reporter was delivering the news of what happened to the news so that it could get broadcasted to people that were watching through television. Still, Malva had shock in her voice as she spoke towards the shaken up camera crew.

 **Alola:**

Everyone in the classroom was dead silent when they watched the collision of the super charged electric move and the colossal Z move. As they waited for the smoke to clear, Hau looked towards his wrist and then back at the screen, there was no way possible in his mind that he could have ever imagined Ash's Pikachu to rival a Z move with a normal move, but of course that was just what he had witnessed.

Lana and Mallow looked with worried expressions towards the screen, the blue haired girl had her hand covering her mouth while the young cook next to her had wide eyes.

"What happened…?" Professor Kukui dared ask only to see that the smoke was starting to clear.

 **At the battlefield:**

Ash and Ashura looked up from their trainer platform after having been covering their bodies from the explosions. Looking through the smoke that was being cleared by the rain, the raven haired trainer noticed that there was one pokemon standing, barely, and another one on the ground completely defeated.

Both trainers gasped as the air got clearer and clearer to reveal who was defeated after that exchange.

"Satoshi's Pikachu is unable to battle," The referee exclaimed as he raised his hand. "Ash's Pikachu wins!" At that very instant the entire stadium erupted into cheers and Ash could not believe it, he had actually defeated one of his father's top notch pokemon.

" _Unbelievable! Ash's Pikachu finished it off with all he had and ended up defeating yet another one of Satoshi's undefeated pokemon!"_

Ash's face turned into a smile as he noticed that Pikachu was right in front of him with a large smile. "Pikachu!" the champion electric mouse exclaimed as he jumped around with scratch marks all over him, but other than that he was completely fine. "Pika pika!"

 **At the stands:**

"PICHU PICHU!" Kapi shouted with her arms at her sides as she restlessly sat on Serena's lap, who was also very happy after the result of the battle.

"Now it is three against two," Shauna said as she looked at Serena. "Seems like Kapi's cheering really helped out, didn't it?"

"Chu pichu!"

Serena smiled as she petted the pokemon in her lap, "I guess, she really wanted Pikachu to win it this time."

Calem did not seem amused as he looked at the battlefield: "One problem, Satoshi still has one pokemon that has not battled yet and that Dragonite. All of Ash's pokemon have taken a substantial amount of damage too."

"What do you mean by that?" Bonnie asked as she looked at the jet black haired trainer only for the orange haired boy to speak up.

"It means that Ash is still at a disadvantage," Trevor replied to which Tierno nodded.

Clemont adjusted the glare in his glasses, "Even more shocking has to be that Pikachu managed to take that amazingly powerful Z move." He then looked forward and clenched his fists. "I don't believe that Pikachu can go through much more before he is defeated."

With Professor Sycamore and Diantha, the two looked down at the battlefield with very surprised expressions, "No way, Ash may be able to pull this one off!" Diantha replied as she pumped her fists.

"Never give up until it is over, Ash definitely has been using that advice to keep on going," Professor Sycamore said with a smile.

 **At the battlefield:**

Ash petted his electric mouse's head as he chuckled and looked forward to see his father grab his Pikachu and begin to walk back towards his trainer platform. "I have to admit Ash," Ashura began which got his son's attention. "Your Pikachu managed to tank a very powerful attack and also delivered a very powerful one as well." The rain clouds then disappeared as he set his Pikachu down in the tunnel behind him and smirked as he grabbed a pokeball from his belt and held it in his hand to throw forward. "Let's see how you deal with this one!" Ashura reeled his hand back and threw his pokeball forward with a very fast motion as he yelled: "Go!"

"RIO!" A large bipedal pokemon landed in the wet grass across from Pikachu. He was blue and black in the limbs and had a beige torso. This pokemon had three spikes too, on the wrists and the chest. Two large pointed ears were also there and this pokemon made a large cry as he made a shockwave ring through the stadium. "Lucario!" he cried as he put on a fighting stance, a glistening mega stone around the pokemon's neck.

" _And it looks like Satoshi's last pokemon is Lucario!"_

The scoreboard then updated to show the winner of the battle:

 **Ash:** _Goodra Noivern Sceptile_ Charizard Greninja **Pikachu**

 **Satoshi:** _Pikachu Zoroark Aerodactyl Aegislash_ Dragonite **Lucario**

"A Lucario," Ash said in awe as his eyes glistened looking at the pokemon in front of him. "I am going to definitely be giving it my all, right Pikachu?"

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted as he smirked while looking forward. "Pika pikachu!" Pikachu chanted as he collected the electricity on his red cheeks.

"Whoa, what gives," Ash said as he then noticed the entire grassy battlefield begin to glow blue once again. "Another field change?"

" _Well will you believe it? We have another field change!"_

The battlefield did not change in form wise, but the middle began to surge upwards in what appeared to be a large tree. Suddenly the blue glow disappeared and both trainers got a good glimpse of a large tree in front of them that had a large diameter. In fact, it looked like a large tree that appeared in those fantasy pictures that Ash had seen in the past. The trees completely covered the sun and allowed for Ash and Ashura to be under the shade. "So a large tree," Ashura said as he adjusted his cap. "Not bad, right Lucario?"

"Rio!"

 **(Incase you have not noticed, this is a reference to Lucario and a Tree of a Beginnings :D)**

" _Our special battlefield has now grown a ginormous tree in the middle! Amazing!"_

"Alright Pikachu, let's set the bar even higher!" Ash exclaimed with a smirk as he pumped both of his fists.

"Pikachu!" The electric mouse was charging up electricity as he then leaned down and waited for his first move against Lucario.

"Use quick attack to gain the advantage and get to the top of the tree as fast as possible!"

"Pika!"

"Hmph," Ashura smirked as he watched the electric mouse begin to make his way up the bark. "Watch him closely Lucario," The man said as he watched his fighting and steel type in front of him follow the yellow blur up to the top of the tree. Ash's father then put his hand forward and shouted his next attack: "Now go after him, use your aura to find Pikachu in the tree!"

Lucario looked up and then made his eyes glow blue before shooting upwards into the tree bark to Ash's surprise as to how fast he was moving. "Luca, Luca, Lucario!" Lucario shouted as he reached the peak of the tree and then jumped above the large canopy, completely overlooking the leaves and battlefield while having a good view of the cheering stands. The pokemon then closed his eyes as he concentrated and located a blue blurb that had the shape of Pikachu jumping from branch to branch.

Ashura smirked and then pumped his fist, "Give Pikachu a good bone rush!"

Ash gasped as he gritted his teeth and saw this: "Pikachu dodge the attack!"

"Pika!" Pikachu chanted as he jumped back and avoided the hit which caused the tree branch to shake. Lucario got to his feet on the branch and then turned his head to be face to face with Pikachu, his two long bones in his arms as his mega stone glistened. "Pika..."

"RIO!" Lucario exclaimed as he charged the electric mouse once more.

"Pikachu!" The smaller pokemon shouted as he jumped over Lucario and ran towards the bark of the tree thus beginning to climb once more higher and higher up the tree.

" _Pikachu's agility successfully avoids bone rush! What an amazing use of speed by Ash's part!"_

Ashura from below put a hand to his side and pumped his fist as he narrowed his eyes, "aura sphere, don't let him get too far!"

"RIO!" Lucario shouted as he formed the blue sphere in between his arms and then shot it forward against the electric type who was running up. An explosion then rang out as Pikachu was struck on his back with the fighting type attack.

"Pika!" Pikachu squealed in pain as he lost his grip and began to fall down with incredible speed towards the ground while being close to the bark.

"Pikachu no!" Ash mouthed as he gritted his teeth and punched the air in front of him: "Use iron tail and engrave it into the bark to slow you down!"

Pikachu opened his eyes and made his tail glow white and stiffen at the same time, "Pika… CHU!" Pikachu shouted as he made his lightning bolt shaped tail dig into the bark and begin to slow him down just before he hit the ground below.

" _I have never seen anything like this before! Iron tail was powerful enough to penetrate the bark of a tree!"_

"Now thunderbolt!" A mirage image of Ash exclaimed showing as he punched the air above him.

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" The electricity crackled and rushed through the air and into the branch where Lucario was, the fighting type narrowing his eyes while watching the incoming attack.

Ashura pumped both of his fists as he exclaimed his next attack: "Dragon pulse!"

"Luca… RIO!" Lucario shouted as he made a large beam escape from between his hands that was shaped like a dragon while having a blue, purple and red tint to it which interacting with the electric attack. The explosion rung out from mid air and this both fighters ended up completely unharmed.

" _And what an amazing collision of both moves! Both Pikachu and Lucario are definitely giving it their all!"_

Ash put an arm to his side and then shouted: "Pikachu, free yourself and then run towards Lucario with quick attack while also using thunderbolt on yourself!"

"Pika!" Pikachu chanted as he freed his tail from the bark and then narrowed his eyes as he looked up and began to run again towards the blue fighting type. "Pika pika pika pika pika pika pika!" The white trail behind him was then completely replaced with a yellow aura of crackling electricity.

"Get to the top of the tree!" Ashura countered as he looked up with gritted teeth. Lucario obliged as jumped to the top of the tree, from below, Pikachu could be seen zigzagging while performing his chant with the electric aura while getting to the top of the tree. When both pokemon emerged from the leaves, Ashura made his next command watching both pokemon be in front of each other. "Bone rush!"

"PIKA!"

"RIO!"

Both pokemon strained for power, Pikachu slamming against the bright blue bones while Lucario's face had an electric glint from the electric types attack. There was then a shockwave and both pokemon ended up going in opposite directions: Pikachu was thrown into the air while Lucario landed in the tree branches of the large tree.

"Dragon pulse!" Ashura exclaimed with a pump of his fist.

"Reverse counter shield!" Ash retaliated while putting his hand out in front of him.

"Pika… CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu shouted as he looked down towards the ground with gleaming eyes before beginning to spin fast while creating an electric tornado that was headed towards the incoming multicolored dragon shaped beam. The two attacks met in midair on top of the tree which resulted in a ginormous explosion that caused Pikachu to get launched in tangent out of the way from the tree completely unable to use anything to slow down the descent.

"Bone rush!"

"Pika?" Pikachu asked in shock as he saw Lucario in front of him. "PIKA!" Pikachu squealed in pain as he got slammed down faster with the blue bone.

"Pikachu no!" Ash shouted in panic as he saw Pikachu rush towards the ground completely limp. " **BOOM!"** An explosion rang out from the ground as the battlefield cracked a little where Pikachu landed.

"Rio…" Lucario landed in front of Ashura with a very a hand on the ground and with a very victorious pose as he looked across from the tree to where Pikachu had landed.

The stadium became quiet as the dust began to clear. "Pika…" Pikachu muttered as he stood up breathing hard. While walking forward, clearly not wanting to give up and keep on going. "Pika…" The scene around the edges grew dark as in slow motion, Pikachu grew limp and began to fall back completely unconscious only to not hit the ground by a pair of fingerless gloves hands stopping him from doing so.

"Pikachu is unable to battle, Lucario wins!" Ash ignored the referee's declaration and the crowd's cheering as he looked at the electric mouse in his hands.

Ash had his eyes shadowed as he looked down at his partner, "Pikachu, are you alright?" He asked in a very calm voice.

"Pikapi," Pikachu nodded slowly while recovering from his battle.

Ash began to walk back towards his trainer's platform and smiled as he looked at the pokemon in his arms: "Thank you so much, you battled well." The raven haired trainer then walked back to the tunnel behind the platform and set Pikachu down inside of there. "Take a good rest, you battled enough for today."

Pikachu's eyes glistened as he watched his pikapi begin to walk back towards the battlefield, "Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted grabbing his trainer's attention. "Pika pikachu!" Pikachu shouted while pumping his fist.

Ash smirked as he grabbed his hat and adjusted it in place. "Right, I can do this! I am not alone!" The raven haired trainer then turned back to the battlefield and put his hand in his pocket to feel a piece of fabric was still in there. "I have everyone behind me…" Ash then touched his belt and felt all five pokeballs. "My pokemon are always with me and I will not give up." Ash then felt the first two pokeballs: Greninja's and Charizard's pokeballs, the ones he had that could still battle. Ash took a deep breath as a gust of wind made his scarf shake and his hair ruffle around. "Alright, what is next dad?"

"Glad you asked," Ashura responded as he took out a pokeball and recalled his Lucario back into red energy.

 **At the stands:**

"Pikachu lost…" Mairin muttered as she held Chespie. "What can Ash do now?" The redhead looked down to see Ash and his opponent conversing beyond the large tree that was in between both trainers. "Come on Ash, you can do this," Mairin said as he eyes gleamed with determination hoping that the raven haired trainer would come through.

"Ches Chespin," Chespie responded looking back up at his partner, clearly agreeing with her.

Clemont looked at the battlefield and then pointed out something: "Lucario has not taken any damage during its battle with Pikachu, all of the attacks were either blocked or did not hit at all."

"Yeah, the advantage that Lucario has is tremendous," Brock agreed while crossing his arms. "It is true that Satoshi's pokemon have worn out Ash's pokemon, specially that Zoroark against both Charizard and Greninja: Ash's last hopes of winning this."

"GO Ash GO!" Bonnie shouted once more while practically standing up from her chair.

"Dedenne!"

"Blrblr!" Squishy also agreed while standing on top of the lemon blonde's head.

Serena looked at Ash with gleaming sapphire blue eyes and waving hair to the slight breeze as she held her ribbon, her fingers intertwining in the fabric near her chest. "Ash, best of luck."

Watching from afar, Lysandre stood looking down at the cheering arena with a smirk on his face, his cut definitely having healed by now. "Ash and Ashura will finish this battle, and then… I will have enough data to fully execute my plan…"

 **With the Elite Four:**

"I really feel like that Satoshi man is very powerful in his raw power," Winkstorm said with a very curious tone while finding it a little harder to move with his armor. "I do like the way that his Lucario was able to put work of a powerful Pikachu like that."

Dransa, as elderly as she was disagreed with her comrade: "You are only biased because of Lucario's steel type." Winkstorm flinched at this claim as Dransa looked at the television screen and narrowed her eyes, "Ash's strategies have outsmarted both Aegislash and even prevented him from getting defeated and thrown away by any other pokemon in Satoshi's team. Talk about another steel type like Aegislash being completely obliterated." The last part was said with a chuckle to which Winkstorm clenched his fists, but did not react violently because of his morality of being a knight in shining armor.

Siebold put a hand to his tie and touched his keystone, "Who is to say that this will be an interesting battle, neither trainer has thrown out their mega evolutions or even had a chance to battle with their full power." The master chef then narrowed his eyes while muttering to himself: "Specially that Greninja's power…"

 **At the battlefield:**

The battlefield once again began to glow as the scene shifted to portray the tied scoreboard:

 **Ash:** _Pikachu Goodra Noivern Sceptile_ Charizard Greninja

 **Satoshi:** _Pikachu Zoroark Aerodactyl Aegislash_ Dragonite Lucario

" _So now that both trainers are down to their last two pokemon, what can we expect from the next battlefield?"_

The view circled to show the side of Ash's face. 'This is it, Charizard and Greninja are all I got, I am going to give it all I've got!' Shifting to his fist with the glistening keystone, there was a sparkle that could be seen as the raven haired trainer clenched his fist to the point that it vibrated. 'I want to show everyone that I can do this!' Ash then narrowed his eyes as he looked towards a mirage image of his father: 'I will win this, I can do this if I put my heart to it!'

Ashura looked at his son with a very serious look on his face as he smiled and looked down while grabbing the edge of his hat, completely ignoring that the battlefield was changing in front of him. 'He is very determined to win this. I want him to become champion of Kalos by beating me, but at the same time, I don't want him to win.' Ashura grinned as he let out a quiet chuckle: 'Oh the conflict with winning my own share of leagues in the past. I remember when I first won the final round.'

 **Flashback:**

" _Charizard use BLAST BURN!" Ashura exclaimed while commanding the large draconic fire type in front of him._

" _GGGGRRRUUUUAAWWWW!" The Charizard shouted as he slammed his fist into the ground thus causing the earth around him to ignite into a blazing inferno that radiated and ruptured through the ground towards his opponent's Blastoise like molten lava. The opposing trainer did not even have time to react as a gleaming view of the larger water type's eyes portrayed the incoming attack, which then radiated into a large explosion that engulfed the entire battlefield with black smoke._

 **At the battlefield:**

Ashura frowned as he remembered his Charizard that… ' _Don't think about that Red, one day you will be reunited with him- Just focus on this battle.'_

Ash and Ashura both had shocked faces when they got the time to look forward and see the battlefield: It was a mountain battlefield, similar to the one where Ash and Trevor battled before. The only difference was the fact that the mountains were sharp pointed and had grass covering them. Clearly, it was a very pleasant sight that made both raven haired trainers smile.

" _And we will continue in a mountain battlefield, how will this affect the pokemon that both trainers choose?"_

Ashura and Ash were both shown with side views of their faces on the left and the right respectively. 'If I am going to win this battle, then I am going to need a flying type!' Both trainers did not speed as they reached into their belts and grabbed a pokeball. Ash and Ashura both flexed their arms and threw their pokeballs forward at the same time: "GO CHARIZARD/DRAGONITE!"

"GRUAW!"

"RAWR!"

Both flashing lights materialized as the pokemon spread out their wings before hitting the ground and began to ascend into the air above, one above Ash and the other above Ashura. Both trainers and their pokemon smirked, definitely both were happy with their decision.

" _And a Charizard against Dragonite battle! This is bound to be one of our most epic surprises in this entire conference!"_

"Let's start this off strong," The older trainer said as he put his hand out: "Use your powerful aqua tail!" Dragonite made his tail glow blue with a watery trail coming from behind as he charged forward towards the fire and flying type. Dragonite was just about to down cut on Charizard when Ash made his move:

"Dragon claw!" The scarfed trainer retaliated while crushing his open hand into a fist in front of him.

Charizard narrowed his eyes while watching the attack and making his green claws to counter. "Gruaw!" The scaly pair of menacing claws that the fire type grew then interacted with the water type move that was radiating from the tail. Charizard and Dragonite struggled for a second before there was a shockwave that repelled both pokemon from each other, the fire type landing in front of Ash panting hard.

Ash went wide eyed as he saw Charizard's decrease in power: 'Zoroark's attacks… That is why Charizard is very tired.' Ash looked forward and noticed that Dragonite was the opposite of tired, in face he was seemingly completely fine and overpowering the battle. "Charizard, don't give up, take flight and use your speed to avoid Dragonite until we get an opening to attack from."

Charizard looked back at Ash and nodded while letting out a puff of smoke from his nostrils. "Gruaw!" He cried as he flew into the bright blue sky and began to encircle the battlefield.

"Ice beam! Stop him from getting far!"

"Rawr!" The dragon and flying type pokemon chanted as he made the freezing blue beam from his mouth. The attack flowed through the sky and struck Charizard where he was flying, just behind the raven haired boy who ignored the sudden drop in temperature he felt while the ice beam passed.

"Gruaw…"

"Charizard no!" Ash flinched in panic as he saw that his fiery partner was beginning to lose altitude. Looking closer, the raven haired trainer saw a shiny spec on the fire type's wings which made him instantly pump both of his fists: "Burn that ice off with flare blitz!"

"Gruaw…" Charizard said as he opened his eyes. "GRRRUUUUAAAAWWW!" Charizard shouted as he flexed his arms as well and instantly ignited his entire body into flames that instantly melted the ice into nothing which allowed him to fly again, shooting upwards and appearing behind Dragonite.

" _And Ash's quick thinking has made Charizard thaw out the wings! What a genius move!"_

"Now go!" Ash exclaimed with a fist pump.

"Gruaw!"

"Rawrrr…." The dragon type pseudo legendary from Kanto screamed in pain as he felt his entire body get rammed into by Charizard, feeling as if he was hit in the back with a flaming missile. Dragonite shook off the pain instantly and smirked back at his opponent, who was still breathing hard from his fatigue.

"Charizard, use dragon claw!" Ash shouted while throwing his fist in front of him.

Ashura saw this as a potential time to strike and put his hand in front of him: "Not gonna work, OUTRAGE!"

"GRUAW!"

"RAWR!"

One pokemon grew a large dragon shaped aura around him as he charged the other dragon who had made two large green claws. Both pokemon instantly met in the middle of the field in mid air above the mountain with the auras colliding in an aerial clash that sent sparks flying in all directions. Ash gritted his teeth as his fire type then got overpowered by the larger pseudo legendary and got sent back into the ground in front of him.

" _What an amazing collision of attacks! It looks like Charizard is at a pinch though, what can Ash do about this?"_

"Charizard!" Ash called out to his pokemon to see that he was starting to get back up, but barely being able to keep himself up because of how tired he was. The fire type was panting hard as he looked forward and narrowed his eyes before turning to his trainer and pumping his fist. The raven haired trainer went a little wide eyed knowing that Charizard wanted to continue on, but he knew that he had to help him out a little bit or else his attacks would not do a thing to Dragonite… "Alright Charizard, we might not get all of the power that we would usually get, but let's try it!"

"Gruaw!" Charizard responded as his trainer lifted his glove up in front of his face with the keystone glistening to the sun rays.

"Keystone!" Ash shouted as the rock began to shine brightly. "Listen to my heart…" The prongs started to shoot out as Charizard's mega stone began to glow blue and shoot out prongs as well that began to interact with the ones from the key stone. "Beyond evolution… MEGA EVOLVE!"

"Grrrrruuuuuuuuuuaaaawwww!" Charizard roared as he grew larger and larger. The glow that enveloped him made him have his new shaped wings and the strong shoulder blades. The fire that was around his mouth forming and resembling his trainer's scarf and suddenly the entire glow stopped thus displaying the new fire and dragon type with the black and blue coloring. "GRUAW!" Charizard exclaimed as he roared and the mega evolution DNA symbol appeared in front of him for a split second sending a shockwave through the arena.

"Hmph…" Ash smirked as his scarf waved to the new power being exerted.

" _And enter Mega Charizard! This is going to be an interesting battle now that Ash has thrown out one of his strongest aces!"_

Ashura looked surprised at his son while eyeing the new powerful obstacle he would have to face. "Not bad Ash…" The scene then showed its edges narrowing as a zoom into the older trainer's eyes depicted a very fiery determination. "Let's see how you deal with this!" He then pumped his fist and shouted: "Dragonite fly forward and go for another outrage!"

"Rawr!" Dragonite nodded as he made himself glow in a dragon red and black aura as he then took flight and rushed towards Charizard, who was eyeing the pseudo legendary pokemon carefully.

Ash responded quick as he made his command: "Dodge it!"

"Gruaw!" Charizard replied as he spread his black wings and took off just as the attack passed under him. Dragonite skidded to a stop as he looked up to see that Charizard was watching him from above.

"Ice beam!"

"Dragon claw! Fly into it!"

"RAWR!" Dragonite roared as he made the freezing orb while looking up at the fire and dragon type while the latter made two large scaly claws. "RAAAWWWWRRR!" The beam shot out and interacted with the claws, which were not stopping Charizard because of the gravity forcing the attack towards the dragon and flying type. "Rawr…" Dragonite yelped in pain as he got slashed in the chest by the blue and black dragon type, the green trail of the penetration disappeared towards the direction of the green scaly claws.

Ashura did not panic as he put his hand forward and shouted for his next attack: "Be strong Dragonite, aqua tail!" The flying type did not even strain as he made his tail glow a blue fluid color before then getting airborne again and going for the water type attack against Charizard, who looked back down in panic.

Ash gritted his teeth as he pumped his fist and shouted his next command: "Thunder punch!"

"GRUAW!" Charizard cried with his red eyes gleaming as his electrified fist was swung downwards against the larger dragon that was swinging his tail upwards. Both attack collided and strained until Dragonite's tail crackled and forced him back towards the ground clearly in pain due to the electricity being conducted. Ashura looked in awe at this as he noticed that Ash clearly had the advantage.

Ash shadowed his eyes and then looked up while throwing his fist out in front of him: "Charizard, use flare blitz!"

"Not going to happen," Ashura declared as he looked at the mountain in front of him and narrowed his eyes. "Dragonite, straighten out your wings and dodge it!" Dragonite opened his eyes and spread his wings out, catching grip of the air once more before sharply turning his body to the right in order to avoid getting hit by the dragon who was engulfed in blue flames. After Dragonite passed, Ashura pumped his fist in front of him., "Now, sky drop!"

"No way!"

"RAWR!"

"Gruaw?" Charizard asked in panic as he felt two large pair of arms pick him up and begin to take him into the sky. The crowds cheered as they saw the two dragon types ascending, although the darker one was struggling to get off of the arms of the Kanto pseudo legendary. "Gruaw!" The infernal fire type cried in desperation trying to get out of the grip of Dragonite.

"Charizard no!" Ash exclaimed in panic while looking up with gritted teeth and clenched fists.

" _Dragonite has gotten ahold of Charizard! This might just be Satoshi's win!"_

 **At the stands:**

"Oh no!" Trevor exclaimed in panic while watching. "If Charizard gets thrown down against the ground then it is all over for him!"

"Come on Ash!" Bonnie shouted.

Mairin held onto Chespie hard as she closed her eyes, "Please Charizard, win this for Ash."

Shauna and Calem had narrowed eyes while looking down at the field, but the former began to comment on how there was no way that Charizard was getting close enough to match Dragonite's power when mega evolved.

Clemont and Brock were deep in thought while Tierno looked at the field with crossed arms, "The fact is, Ash is kind of stuck at this point, Charizard is too tired to keep going…"

Clemont then spoke up, "Still, I would not underestimate the power that Charizard has when he is in a pinch. If Ash does pull himself together he can actually pull something off."

"The power of a pokemon that could take down the champion of Kanto," Brock whispered. "No doubt Ash is trying his hardest, but the power Dragonite holds make it a very powerful obstacle."

Serena sat their in silence looking as Charizard struggled with her hand in her ribbon. Her eyes were crystal blue and she gritted her teeth as she saw Dragonite begin to arch around.

 **In Alola:**

"This looks like it is over," Kukui said plainly. "Dragonite is completely overpowering Charizard."

Hau gritted his teeth, "No way, I know Ash can pull something off." Everyone instantly looked at the green haired trainer with confused faces as he stood up from his chair and pumped his fist. "Ash is someone that would never give up, he will keep going until Charizard can't keep battling and he would never just stand there and not try anything." He then took a deep breath and looked back at the screen that portrayed the Kalos League Finals. "Come on Ash, think of something."

 **At the battlefield:**

" _Charizard is struggling, this looks all over for him folks!"_

The scene made itself dark and focused on Charizard being held by Dragonite through his strong arms. Ash then flinched at the sight of an idea coming to him.

"Alright, you want to see that I can still do damage?" Ash asked while smirking. "You are so close to Charizard that you don't see that you are still vulnerable by his body. Charizard, FLARE BLITZ!"

"GrrrrrrUUUUUUUUAAAWWW!" the infernal draconic fire and dragon type shouted as he engulfed himself in blue flames that consumed both him and Dragonite. Ashura looked shocked as he watched his dragon type begin to struggle as well from being so close to the fire type attack and beginning to take damage as well.

Ashura clenched his fists and threw his hand forward, "Urgh, let go of him!"

"Rawr!" Dragonite cried as he let Charizard go from above, a view from below shows Charizard falling on his back from the larger pokemon ascending higher, his fiery aura still there.

" _No way! Satoshi was forced to let go of his great opportunity by Ash's quick thinking!"_

Ashura then threw a hand at his side and made his next command: "Dragonite, now outage!"

Seeing the black and red aura around the dragon and flying type, Ash flinched, but then threw a hand into the air and shouted for the same command he had done moments ago: "Flare blitz!"

"GRUAW!" Charizard ignited himself once more to follow up by flapping his wings and closing the gap with Dragonite in less than an instant. " **BOOM!"** The explosion rang out and caused Ash's scarf to wave as Ashura's closed also shook. Both trainers were then consumed by the smoke that had come from the explosion while the crowd stopped cheering wondering what had happened.

" _What an impact! I can't see a thing at all!"_

Ash and Ashura were both then shown looking through the smoke and dust before noticing two shadows interacting in the smoke which caused them both to go wide eyed knowing they had an opportunity to finish things off. "SKY DROP!/SEISMIC TOSS!"

"GRUAW!"

"RAWWWRR!"

As the dust settled, through the smoke, everyone saw how the two dragons were holding onto each other like if they were hugging whilst rocketing towards the ground. " **BOOM!"** Once again the smoke and dust rippled through the arena as both pokemon crashed into the top of the mountain and caused both Ash and Ashura to shield themselves.

" _Both pokemon have crashed into the ground! I can't believe it!"_

"What happened…?" Ash asked as the dust settled.

As soon as the smoke cleared, it was seen that both pokemon were in the ground lying next to each other, Charizard was also in his original form while Dragonite was unconscious as well and with his head on Charizard's belly.

"Both pokemon are unable to battle, it is a draw!" the referee declared.

The two trainers went wide eyed as the scoreboard updated and the eerie silence of the crowd was replaced with gasps and cheers from the spectacular show that was just shown.

" _And with that, this battle has ended in a double knock out!"_

 **At the stands:**

"A tie?!" Calem exclaimed as he put his hand on his jet black hair. "It is actually going to go down to the last pokemon on both sides!" Serena heard this and looked at the scoreboard, sure enough, both Ash and Ashura had completely worn down each other to their last pokemon:

 **Ash:** _Charizard Pikachu Goodra Noivern Sceptile_ Greninja

 **Satoshi:** _Dragonite Pikachu Zoroark Aerodactyl Aegislash_ Lucario

Serena looked at Kapi, who was in her hands and smiled, "Alright, I believe that Ash can win this!" Serena then petted her electric mouse and spoke up again, "Isn't that right Kapi?"

"Chu PI!"

"Not so fast," Clemont said which got everyone's attention. "That Lucario that is about to go up against Greninja can mega evolve… Not going to lie, but this Lucario seems to be a lot more powerful that even Gurkinn's Mega Lucario."

Brock then turned to Clemont, "How powerful is Gurkinn's Lucario?"

"It is strong alright," Everyone turned to Calem who was looking at the battlefield while narrowing his eyes. "Before I challenged Korrina, I asked Gurkinn for a battle to warm up and during that battle, he swept my team of Electrike, Croagunk, and Quilladin."

Shauna nodded to that, "I was there, and I thought that although Croagunk had poisoned him, then he could win with Quilladin, but the fact is that Lucario was just too strong." Mairin heard this and grew a worried look on her face. She felt less confident in Ash's ability to even put a dent on Ashura's Lucario if it was true.

"He's that powerful?" Trevor asked along with Tierno.

"Who cares," Everyone turned to Serena who was was smirking. "This is not Gurkinn's Lucario and we don't know until Ash battles him. I still believe that he can win!" Mairin smiled as she held Chespie after hearing this. She pumped her fists and muttered something to which her Chespin smiled as well.

Professor Sycamore and Diantha sat where they were with very interested looks in their faces. "I can't believe that we ended up in a final round where both trainers are down to their last pokemon. That is a very rare occasion that I have never seen during my time hosting the pokemon league," Diantha said with a chuckle.

"It is definitely something that I would not have counted in happening either," Professor Sycamore said with a smile. "I wish the best of luck to both trainers in the final round."

Lysandre was then shown looking down at the battlefield with a smirk. The broken glass in front of him not bothering him one bit from analyzing the battle to which everyone was cheering for.

 **At the battlefield:**

"Charizard, you were great," Ash said as he put his draconic fire type's pokeball back in his belt to then be in a staredown with his own father, who also had recalled his Dragonite. "I guess this is it… I am going to give it all I got if I want to win this."

The scene circled around and focused on Ashura's eyes, who were brighter than ever as they traveled up and down the field that was now beginning to glow blue once again.

" _The battlefield was changing all over again, but what would it be this time? Something that could give the advantage to Lucario or Greninja?"_

The field started to bulge out, to which Ash and Ashura both flinched looking at the field's curvature. Suddenly, the blue glow shot through the air of the stadium and created a shockwave that made the raven haired trainer's scarf wave while the opposing trainer's clothes ruffled around. Suddenly, at the hearing of "oohs" and "aahs", Ash looked up and went wide eyed at the way that the light around him disappeared: Above him was a dark night sky with many dark blue stars that were glowing above him. It was so beautiful although there was no moon present, and even Ashura thought that it was thoughtful, but in his opinion, it seemed unnecessary… Until he looked down at the battlefield in front of him.

"No way…" Ash mouthed in awe as he saw the blue glow of the battlefield disappeared to show somewhat of a flat abyss, but with clear mist covering the ground. It was definitely a combination of the sky change and the field to make a very pretty show.

" _Both trainers will now be battling in what appears to be a plain misty field! What a beautiful sight to take in!"_

"So in other words, just a flat battleground to battle in that looks slightly cooler," Ashura said with a chuckle before adjusting his cap before then turning his attention to his son. "Ash, let's do this!" He then reached into his belt and pulled out a pokeball which he held in his hand before then looking up and with gritted teeth launch it forward for the bright light to appear to materialize the pokemon. "GO LUCARIO!"

"RIOI!" Lucario shouted as he took form with his blue fur raising above the mist while putting on a battle stance that caused everyone in the stadium to cheer as his mega stone glistened in the light emitted by the stars above. "Luca!"

" _And there it is! Lucario from Satoshi's team, let's see how Ash responds to this challenge from his opponent!"_

A zoom in from a belt with five pokeballs showed a fingerless glove with a glistening keystone reach towards the first pokeball while feeling the roundness and solid metal feeling of the device. Ash was then shown with his eyes narrowed as he looked at the pokeball in front of him and smirked silently as he enlarged the pokeball to then turning his body to the side and launching the pokeball forward with his right arm like if it was a frisbee. "Greninja, I CHOOSE YOU!"

The pokeball travelled fast through the air and erupted to the signature sound and flashing light that then ended with the light turning into a frog ninja pokemon that was standing in in the mist with his arms crossed while looking forward. "Ninja!" Greninja said under his scarf as he looked forward.

" _To finish this off it will be the mythical and mysterious Greninja against the powerful and talented Lucario! Keeping in mind that both of these pokemon have already taken down one opponent from one another's trainer's, now we have to wait and see which one of the two will pull through with two knockouts!"_

"Let the battle resume!" The referee exclaimed as he raised his arm which made both trainers lock eyes with silence radiating through them.

Everything was still…

Until…

Greninja twitched the edge of his tongue and Lucario took a slight step back allowing Ash to throw his hand in front of him. "Water shuriken!" Greninja was quick to reach for his legs and made the water ninja stars that were fluid and brightly glowing as the sinister water type then uncrossed his arms and shot the shurikens forward.

"Ninja!"

" _And here we go, Ash is making the first move…"_

Ashura swiped an arm across his body and shouted an attack as well: "Lucario, bone rush, counter them!"

"Luca!" Lucario shouted as he made the two white glowing bones and threw them like a boomerang through the air. The two attacks then collided and caused an explosion that sent a shockwave into both directions of the battlefield.

"Now, Lucario, give them a good feeling of aura sphere!"

"Luca!" Lucario shouted as he made his two hands form a large sphere that radiates a bright white and blue glow before then shooting it against the sinister water type pokemon in front of him. "RIO!"

Ash saw the threat immediately and narrowed his eyes going back to a gym battle where he used a move to deflect aura sphere completely out of the way. "Greninja, use aerial ace and then smash it into the ground!" Greninja did not even flinch as he made his four limbs glow whitish blue before propelling himself forward with all of his speed. As he reached the fighting type move, he jumped over it and then punched it downwards from above, with a little bit of resistance, the ball of energy slammed into the ground and smoke come up in front of Ash as the water and dark type then got an opportunity to attack against Lucario. "Now GO!" The raven haired trainer commanded while pumping his fist.

"Ninja!" Greninja shouted as he began to get near Lucario, who had narrowed his eyes while eyeing the Kalos starter.

"Block it!"

"Lucario!" Lucario shouted as he put his paw out in front of him which caused the dark type to stagger for a bit with his light blue limbs before being pushed back into the air with a seemingly powerful shockwave that radiated from the steel and fighting type.

Ash flinched seeing Greninja get pushed back like that, he was not expecting Lucario to completely block it. "Now use copycat!" Ashura shouted with his fist in front of him. Greninja looked shocked as he got rammed into by Lucario's leg, that was glowing a whitish red color antagonizing against the color of Greninja's aerial ace. The frog ninja pokemon then hit the ground in front of Ash and landed with his hand in front of him touching the seemingly misty ground.

" _And there is Satoshi's amazing comeback! In case anyone didn't know, copycat allows Lucario to use the same move that was last used by Greninja, this can be trouble for Ash if he is not careful!"_

"Greninja, are you alright?" Ash asked as he watched his water type get up without the glow on his limbs and nod to tell the raven haired trainer that it would take more than that to knock him out. "Good, now run at him and use aqua blade!"

"Gren!" Greninja nodded as he leaned forward and began to run with his hands behind his back towards the opposing fighting type, who had appeared to be acting very stationary during the battle. The sinister water type starter from Kalos then pulled out his hands in front of him and made two dark blue kunais that had water rippling effect as he ran forward.

Ashura saw Greninja's blades and crossed his hands in front of his face before commanding his next attack: "Use bone rush!" Lucario spread out his arms and through the mist, the two bones appeared. Rushing forward, the fighting type crossed his bones in front of him as Greninja swung wildly at him with his kunais which caused both pokemon to stay at a stalemate while causing a shockwave that rippled them both to fall in front of their trainers with the fog encircling them as they halted to a stop. Ashura then saw his opportunity to attack seeing that the water type had retracted his blades and threw his arm forward with glowing bright eyes: "Dragon pulse!"

"Lucario!" Lucario exclaimed as he spread out his hands and made his left hand make a red orb of energy while his right made a purple one and his mouth formed a blue one. Both beams then shot out simultaneously and merged together to form a large dragon shaped beam that was headed towards the ninja kalos starter, the colossal beast displayed an elegant light show as he approached Greninja and the mist seemed to clear the way too.

Ash flinched as he saw this and instantly he reacted by pumping his fist with his left hand while stretching his right arm out to his right, "Double team and get out of there!"

"Gren gren gren!" Greninja chanted as he raised his arms in a cross fashion pose that is common for his species to make while splitting himself into many different shaded copies that covered Ash's side of the mist. The dragon shone through the darkness and collided with the ground of the many frog ninja pokemon while allowing for the mist to settle down with still many copies of Greninja standing in front of Ash, who had a smirk on his face.

Ashura smiled as he saw this and pumped his fist, "copycat!"

"Rio!" Lucario shouted as he glowed with a white aura for a split second. "Luca luca luca!" Lucario also chanted as he split himself into many copies of himself which ended up covering his side of the mist. The result was both sides with seemingly armies of pokemon standing there with battle stances.

" _Amazing! And it looks like both trainers have entire squadrons on their sides! I have never seen anything like this!"_

"Water shuriken!/Aura sphere!" Both trainers shouted in unison while raising their arms.

"GREN!"

"RIO!"

Both armies of bipedal pokemon charged up their attacks, ninja stars against orbs of energy. The result: Instantly, all copies disappeared with a large explosion in front of both trainers that left them shielding their faces while looking forward. The crowd seemingly had gone quiet as the mist around both pokemon persisted, but they were panting hard in front of their trainers, clearly wanting to keep going, but with more power now.

" _I can feel it, the climax is upon us everyone! Let's see that Ash and Satoshi will give us!"_

 **At the stands:**

"Come on Ash!" Bonnie shouted as she extended her fist outward. Mairin also did a similar action in the dark hexagonal stadium. Seemingly, the six sided lights had been turned off as well and the scoreboard dimly lit up the entire stadium, but the lightshow of blue colors coming from the actual battlefield kept the entire stadium completely captivated by the beauty and display of colors. Bonnie once again stood up from her seat and began cheering on some more: "Beat him and become the champion already!"

"Bonnie calm down," Clemont said with a chuckle while looking at his sister. The lemon blonde boy was also very restless, not something common as his hands were shaking as they gripped the edge of the seat: this was it, the result of the battle would be known in a couple of minutes, whether Ash won or lost, it is clear that at least he gave it all he got against his opponent.

Shauna and Calem seemed to have very stressed out expressions on their faces and similarly Trevor and Tierno were also seemingly getting excited for how everything was about to escalate for the climax of the Kalos League.

Serena though, she held Kapi in her hands, who was very cheerful during the battle and had been chanting for Ash, but the honey blonde haired girl who had shiny gold hair and resonating shining aqua eyes from the dim indigo light given from the stadium and the stars above, was holding onto her cerulean ribbon. At the same time, she narrowed her eyes and whispered: "I believe in you, _win or lose_ …"

"Alright, this is where things get good," Night said as he leaned forward into the railing. His spiky hair waving a little in the wind as he took a sigh. "Jolteon take a good look at the movement of Ash's body…"

"Jol?" Jolteon asked while looking back at him.

"Yes," Night replied as he took a deep breath. "Our reverse evolution is not the same, but there are some similarities in the way that it is caused by a strong bond." He then narrowed his eyes as he eyed the Greninja, "If it was reverse evolution, Greninja would turn into a less sinister looking pokemon, but this is different, this is almost like a fusion of trainer and pokemon."

"Jolteon…" Jolteon said as he nodded and looked at the frog ninja, his yellow spiky fur keeping the electric type warm as he began studying Ash's pokemon.

 **At the battlefield:**

"Ash," The older trainer said as the scene made the stadium completely disappear with both pokemon battling completely disappearing from view. The only thing that was visible was Ash and his father standing across from each other with the blue mist rising from below while the dark night sky was above them with the stars shining brightly. "It has been a while since we last saw each other, our time together ended very suddenly, and in a very bad note… I still regret falling for the trap that made me take lives of people that didn't deserve it, especially your mother- my wife." Ashura sighed as he shadowed his eyes in his red cap. "Although I never got to apologize directly, I know it will take some time for you to forgive me…" The trainer that once went by the name Red then looked up and narrowed his eyes. "I want to tell you what I feel through this battle, please understand me, son."

The scene returned to normal with both trainer standing across from each other, Ashura though, he made his move as he revealed the key stone in his wrist, which started to shine brightly. "Now, Lucario, let's show them our strength!" Ashura then raised his wrist into the air while shouting his next command: "Lucario, MEGA EVOLVE!"

"RIO!" Lucario shouted as both trainer and pokemon had a light blue aura surround them before the mega stone around the bipedal fighting type's neck began to shine brightly as well. The prongs from the mega stone and keystone began to connect as the pokemon began to glow white as well followed by a transformation of ultimate power. "LUCA!" Lucario cried as he flexed his muscles to then expel his arms to his sides as the glow disappeared. "LUCARIO!" Lucario shouted making a shockwave rush through the arena and making Ash's scarf and clothes wave. The mega evolution symbol then appeared in front of the fighting type for a brief moment, who was now bigger with more yellow fur and with blood red markings at the end of his limbs. Notably, there was also more spikes around his body and the extensions behind his head were larger than ever.

Ash grabbed his hat and adjusted it as the scene returned to only being him and his father. The raven haired trainer was shown from behind as he looked straight ahead with his scarf shaking a little. "Dad, I should have known you would have joined just to battle me. Although I never expected to be doing so well against you, here I am toe to toe with you in a battle that seems like it won't end." He then took a deep breath as he formed a fist in front of his chest. "I guess this is it, huh? Well I promised myself that I would win this battle in order to take my next step in becoming a pokemon master, and although I know that it is not going to be easy, I will do it… I- no, _we_ won't lose here, not now…" The scene then returned to normal as the mist began to clear, but the sky stayed dark like it was before.

" _It looks like the mist has vanished… With that, we will have to finish this battle in a black and blue spiked battlefield!"_

Ash looked at the battlefield ahead of him and smirked seeing the dark colored rocky ground along with the occasional spikes that came from the ground that were glowing blue. Although there was plenty of space to battle in.

 **The Resistance- Nightcore**

 **(Guitar entrance)**

The referee ordered for the battle to resume and then Ashura made the first move as he punched the air in front of him: "Use aura sphere!"

"Luca… RIO!" Lucario shouted as he made the large shining sphere with his hands and then propelled it forward with all of his power. The sphere went through the air and approached the frog ninja pokemon before the raven haired trainer crushed a fist in front of him.

"Greninja, let's do this!" Ash shouted as he pumped his fist, something that his pokemon copied at the same time as he finished flexing his arm in a way that made him shake in excitement as he then shifted to his other arm. " **IIICCCKKEEEEEEE!"**

"NINJA!" Greninja shouted as he made the torrent shoot out at the same time as he and Ash flexed their arms at their sides while shouting, thus making the entire view flash white.

 _Am a nation…_ **Portrays a Sceptile slashing the scene with two long green blades.**

 _Am a million faces formed together made for elevation._ **Depicts a Noivern rushing forward with a glowing celestial aura.**

 _I am a soldier, I won't surrender…_ **Displays a Goodra shooting forward a white beam.**

 _Faith is like a fire that never burns to embers._ **Shows a Pikachu punching the ground with an electrical aura.**

 _(Who's gonna stand up, who's gonna fight?) The voice of the unheard!_ **Shows Charizard in his mega form charging forward with two green claws.**

 _(Who's gonna break these chains and lies?) Love is the answer!_ **Shows a pair of brown boots going in tipy toes towards a set of red and black sneakers.**

 _I gotta speak it, believe it that's how I feel inside!_

 _I, I can't, can't sit here quiet!_ The scene returns to the stadium as it portrays the red eyes of Greninja glowing for the torrent of water as the frog ninja pokemon extended his arms forward along with his trainer, thus causing the entire torrent to shoot out like a wall of water and close the gap with the aura sphere, which caused an explosion in the middle of the dark battlefield.

Ash is then shown looking up from his cap. A closeup of the V neck area of his sweater shows as the raven haired trainer closed his fist in the white circle area. _You can take my heart you can take my breath… WHEN YOU PRY IT FROM MY COLD DEAD CHEST!_ Ash, with gleaming eyes, then put his hand forward and shouted his command: "Greninja run at him and use aqua blade!"

"Gren!" Greninja shouted as he made his blue kunais form before he ran forward with his new look: Red lightning fins next to his eyes, which were darker red as well. His chest also had the same pattern that Ash's attire has and then Greninja's tongue waved around with a blue color that resembles the scarf that his trainer wears. Greninja's large water shuriken then gleamed from behind as he was shown running towards the fighting type ahead. "Gren… ninja!" Greninja shouted as he began to wildly swing around his blades.

"Copycat!" Ashura retaliated while extending his arm forward. Lucario made two blades, but instead of them being fluid and watery, they were reddish-orange while blazing on fire. Lucario then began to run forward as well in an attempt to meet up with the sinister water type. _This is how we rise up!_

"GREN!"

"LUCA!"

 _Heavy as a hurricane, louder than a freight train!_

Both pokemon closed the gap immediately and begin to swing their blades back and forth, although most hits were just ricocheting off the other's weapons. A mirage image of Ash then showed of himself behind greninja as Lucario swung his infernal blade on Greninja's arm, the ninja pokemon falling back a little while grabbing himself. "Urgh," Ash winced as he felt the burning sensation from the side.

 _This is how we rise up!_

"Aura sphere!" Ashura shouted as he gritted his teeth and moved his head forward as he commanded the move. Lucario looked up and with gleaming eyes shot the sphere forward towards Greninja, who was looking up with more determined eyes now.

 _Heart is beating faster, feels like thunder!_

Ash quickly looked up and stepped back with one foot as he pulled back his fist: "Greninja, use aerial ace!" Greninja made his arms and legs glow a whitish blue color before charging forward and quickly slamming his fist down on the actual sphere thus causing it to slam into the dark rocky ground while causing dust to pick up. Ash was then shown with his right leg high in the air as well, "Now GO!"

 _Magic!_

"Greninja!" Greninja chanted as he was shown to be in the same position as his trainer while slamming his foot down on the fighting type's head.

 _Static!_

"Lucario," Lucario winced as his head fell back.

 _Call me a fanatic!_

"Nin… JA!" Greninja was about to slam into Lucario's chest, but the fighting type grabbed him just in time. "Gren…" Greninja muttered as he saw that he was open for an attack.

Ashura pumped his fist and then made his next move: "Throw him Lucario!"

 _It's our world, they can never have it!_

"LucaRIO!" Lucario shouted as he swung his body around and taking Greninja with him around as well. "RIO!" Lucario finished as the sinister waster type was being returned to his own trainer, who was gritting his teeth.

 _This is how we rise up!_

Ashura was then shown putting his hand down next to him with a quick and firm pose: "Dragon pulse!" Lucario instantly made his arms and mouth charge up the separate beams and then shot the red, purple, and blue forward and into the air for them to merge and create a ginormous dragon shaped energy beast that was headed right for the water and dark type.

 _It's our resistance!_

Greninja was shown with his eyes closed while falling back in pain before a mirage image of Ash made him look forward towards the beam, "Greninja use water shuriken!" The raven haired trainer commanded as he reached for his back like the water type. Greninja then launched the large ninja star forward for it to create an explosion that caused a shockwave in the middle of the field to which Ash's scarf was shown waving from behind while looking up at the smoke.

 _YOU CAN'T RESIST US!_ **Short guitar solo starts again.**

"Gren!" Greninja said silently as he landed in front of his trainer, who had his arm in the ground like a ninja, with the same pose as the latter. "Greninja," Greninja replied as both trainer and pokemon both back up to their feet at the same time as the water shuriken appeared behind the frog ninja pokemon with a quick zing.

 _Hey are you hearing? Are you listening?_

Ash gritted his teeth as he looked forward, 'Lucario is just being patient and then attacking after I attack, if I was not careful there, Greninja could have taken a lot of damage… I have to try something else.'

"Use bone rush!" Ashura shouted as he crossed his arms across the front of his torso.

 _Sleeping in the shadows, could be making history!_

Lucario crossed his arms and then made two white bones appear, after that, the aura pokemon jumped into the air and charged down against the water type that was waiting patiently for Ash to make his move so that he could also do something about it.

 _Walk through fire, walk through water…_

"Now double team!"

"Gren gren gren!"

"RIO!" Lucario landed on the ground and growled in frustration when he noticed that the water type that he just uncrossed his blades on was just a decoy. "Lucario…" Lucario muttered as he looked around and then closed his eyes. The entire scene went black around the aura pokemon until there was one blue figure that was approaching from behind one of the rocky blue spikes: the real Greninja. "Luca!" Lucario shouted as he turned around and charged towards where he sensed the real pokemon.

 _Used to be a slave..._

"Now Greninja, aqua blade!" Ash shouted as he made the appearance of the weapon in his hands. Lucario swung down only to be met with a dark blue kunai that stopped him from proceeding any further. "Now's our chance," A mirage image of Ash said as he pulled back his other fist. "Aerial ace!"

 _But now you are a conqueror..._

Greninja made his limb glow white and mimicked his trainer as he slammed the super effective flying type move into the chest of the fighting type. "NINJA!" Greninja shouted as he pushed back Lucario to be in front of his trainer.

Ashura and Ash were then shown on the left and right respectively while commanding their pokemon to make their next attack: "Dragon Pulse!/Aqua Blade!"

The scene slowed to slow motion as the dragon shaped beam was launched into the airborne frog that had his dark blue blades out. The two slowly approaching each other like an assassin attempting to slay a threatening beast. _You can take my heart you can take my breath!_

 _WHEN YOU PRY IT FROM MY COLD DEAD CHEST!_

The scene speed up as Greninja was shown with gleaming eyes as he entered the dragon's mouth and then made the entire dragon type move shatter into a view of many different shades of blue, red, and purple that scattered throughout the stadium filled with cheering people, who were enjoying the insane entertainment.

 _This is how we rise up!_

"Aura sphere!" Ashura shouted as Lucario made his ball of energy appear right in front of him in his arms as he held it out just as Greninja was coming with his blue blades sparkling in the night sky.

 _Heavy as a hurricane, louder than a freight train!_

"GREN!"

"RIO!"

" **BOOM!"** Shortly after the gap closed, the pokemon both fell back in front of their trainers having taken some damage because of how powerful the shockwave was.

Ashura looked at Lucario with concern, noticing the fighting type breathing hard as he stood in front of his trainer, "Lucario, are you alright?" Lucario looked back at his trainer and nodded knowing that he could still go on.

 _This is how we rise up!_

On the other hand, when Greninja landed in front of Ash and fell to his knees, his trainer also winced and grabbed his chest in pain. "Greninja, stay strong, we can keep going!" Ash shouted as both trainer and pokemon raised back to their feet with a little bit of difficulty. His heart was pounding against his chest, something that made him feel stressed, but at the same time, he was enjoying this battle, his intoxication to the adrenaline had him excited and most of all sweating: A droplet ran down his cheek and to his neck, but it was keeping him alive…

 _Heart is beating faster, feels like thunder!_

"Aura sphere again!" Ashura shouted as he punched the air in front of him.

 _Magic!_

Ash reached for his back and then made his next command: "Greninja, water shuriken! You can do this!"

 _Static!_

Lucario charged up his attack once more, but this time he shot it forward with amazing speed as it spiraled towards the frog ninja pokemon, who reached for his back and swung his arm around to throw the navy weapon against the sphere, which caused the two attacks to collide in the middle of the field and cause an explosion that sent dust and smoke in all directions until both Ash and his father were shown gritting their teeth with their fists clenched beside them until...

 _Call me a fanatic!_

Aura sphere managed to overpower the shuriken and was headed straight for Greninja, whose eyes were gleaming from the approaching attack, but Ash was quick to cross his arms in front of his face as if he was carrying blades, "Aqua blade!"

 _It's our world, they can never have it!_

"NINJA!" Greninja shouted as he sliced the entire sphere in half to the point that it shattered completely as the very fluid state of the blades was shown in the hands of the ninja frog.

 _This is how we rise up…_

"Alright, Greninja go!" Ash shouted as he pumped both of his fists and looked up at the air.

 _It's our resistance, you can't resist us!_

"Ninja!" Greninja shouted as he jumped with a fist in front of him, the entire stadium and battlefield visible as the Kalos water starter reached the highest point that he could from a single jump.

 _Up up up up up…_

"Now double team!" Ash shouted as he spread his arms out. Ashura gritted his teeth and a little bit of the color in his face was gone as he watched Greninja split into the many copies of himself that was looking like he was about to launch a large attack right at him. "Take this, a taste of everything that Greninja and I have got, WATER SHURIKEN!" The raven haired trainer exclaimed with a smile as he reached behind him.

 _We're rising up up up up up (the voice of the unheard)..._

"Gren!" Greninja chanted as he took the shuriken behind him and made it glow white before it turned into a shiny red color and grew to a size that was at least eight times the size of Greninja himself. "Gren… NINJA!" Greninja shouted as he pulled back his arm and then swung it forward to launch the large shuriken forward.

 _Rising up up up up up…_

 _We're rising up up up up up (love is the answer)..._

"Dodge it and propel yourself into the air with aura sphere Lucario!" Ashura shouted with an urgent voice as he looked directly at his pokemon.

 _Rising up up up up up…._

 _We're rising up up up up up (love is the answer)..._

"Luca!" Lucario shouted as he jumped and then made the aural attack slam into the ground to make him go airborne to the height that the large water shuriken only landed in front of the older trainer with a large explosion that sent the entire battlefield to be covered in dust that instantly started to clear once again.

 _This is how we rise up..._

Ashura then flipped his hat and looked forward with a smile and gleaming eyes: "This is over now! Lucario send it right back at him with copycat!"

"RIO!" Lucario shouted as the large red shuriken formed on top of his raised hand while spinning violently. "LUCARIO!" Lucario exclaimed as he looked like he was about to throw the entire shuriken forward.

 _It's our resistance, you can't resist us!_

"Gren?" Greninja asked as he landed with a fearful look in his eyes.

Ash looked at the attack that was about to be launched right at them, forming fists with his hands that shook in place because of the stress. The raven haired trainer took a deep breath and was about to accept defeat before he shoved his hands into his pockets and felt the fabric again, to which he remembered: "I won't give up, not now!" Ash declared as he looked around the battlefield with his hand with the fingerless glove right under his chin, the keystone glistening to the dark environment on it. Looking around, Ash then had no chance but to try something risky: "Greninja, listen up, act quick, use aqua blade on one of those spikes and then throw it at the water shuriken!"

 _THIS IS HOW WE RISE UP!_

"Ninja!" Greninja shouted as he used his speed to get to work in cutting down the biggest spike he could find with his two blades, which were so sharp that they sliced through the stone like a knife cuts butter.

 _HEAVY AS A HURRICANE, LOUDER THAN A FREIGHT TRAIN!_

"Luca… RIO!" Lucario shouted as he thrusted the attack forward with all his might, the shuriken making his way towards the sinister water type.

 _THIS IS HOW WE RISE UP!_

Greninja already had his bright blue spike which he had in both of his arms because it was so big to carry. "Gren… NINJA!" Greninja shouted as he was swinging his body about to throw the spike at the large attack.

 _HEART IS BEATING FASTER, FEELS LIKE THUNDER!_

Ash then gasped as he had a flashback of what happened during his battle against Calem, time seemed to slow down as Ash then noticed the glistening shuriken on Greninja's back while doing the throwing motion with his body. "BOOST IT WITH WATER SHURIKEN!"

 _MAGIC, STATIC, CALL ME A FANATIC!_

"NINJA!" Greninja shouted as he threw the spike forward while at the same time losing his balance, but that did not stop the frog ninja pokemon from grabbing the water type ninja star from behind his back and spin around to throw it once more before his body touched the ground on its back. Greninja was then lying there hoping that what he did was enough to stop the incoming attack as he looked up at the incoming shuriken and his attack that were about to collide as he could not do anything anymore, but hope... Hope that his contraption would work.

 _IT'S OUR WORLD! THEY CAN NEVER HAVE IT!_

 _THIS IS HOW WE RISE UP!_ Ash looked up with gritted teeth and clenched fists as he watched the two attacks struggle, his spike boosted by water shuriken creation against the giant red shuriken launched by the opposition. _IT'S OUR RESISTANCE!_

 _YOU CAN'T RESIST US!_ **Guitar solo continues.**

" **ZING!"** Ash stared in awe as the giant water shuriken then got completely penetrated to the point that the spike went right through it while making a clean cut. Greninja watched with gleaming eyes as both halves of the red ninja star exploded at his sides while completely avoiding the frog ninja pokemon as the spike then shot through the air.

"Luca?" Lucario asked in mid air while watching the spike with the smaller ninja star being propelled right at him, his eyes gleaming with a bright light as the attack got closer and closer… " **BOOM!"** There was a clear explosion in mid air as Lucario began falling from the air and then landed with a large thud. **Guitar solo ends…**

There was an eerie silence in the entire stadium as both pokemon were on the ground with their chests rising and falling slowly. Lucario and Greninja were both on the ground, still on their superior forms while looking up at seemingly nothing in the night sky, that was coated with blue stars.

"Lucario!"

"Greninja!"

Both trainers called out to their pokemon and feeling inspired by this:

"Gren… ninja…" Greninja muttered as he sat up and got back up to his feet with his feet a little wobbly, but still with some energy left.

Lucario seemed to take some time as well, but he managed to get on his feet as well, "Luca… Lucario…" Lucario muttered as he also was feeling drained, but seemingly able to continue battling.

"Let's finish this with our next attack!" Both trainers shouted as their pokemon nodded in response.

 **Second guitar solo starts.**

"Lucario, AURA SPHERE!" Ashura shouted as he mimicked his pokemon's action to form a sphere of fighting type energy.

"Luca…." Lucario shouted as he charged up his attack with all his might, a seemingly blue aura encapsulating the fighting and steel type as he made the attack bigger and bigger to the point that he was holding it over his head with both of his arms, the ball was at least eight times bigger than Lucario as he held it charged up on top of him with both of his arms. The energy spiraling from the attack was unmatched as it created a wind that radiated through the stadium.

Ash's eyes gleamed in the darkness of the sky as his fists shook with excitement as he raised his hand into the air, the one with the keystone that was glistening in the fingerless glove. Ash's energy was also notable as his hand shook violently while being held in the air: " **GEKKOUGA! MIZU SHURIKEN!"**

" **KKKKKOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUU!"** Greninja shouted as he grabbed his shuriken from behind and raised his hand as well. The shuriken began to glow a bright white color as a torrent of water shot up from the sides of the frog ninja pokemon and made the shuriken grow to be large as well. The ninja star spun faster and faster until the torrent disappeared and the red color of the energy was imminent… But Greninja was not finished as he then made another battle cry that made the stadium somewhat shake, the shock wave being sent just about everywhere. " **KKKKKOOOOUUUUUGGGGGGAAAAAA!"** Greninja exclaimed as the shuriken the began to glow white and spin so fast that it then grew once more to be even bigger and a very metallic golden color.

"LUCARIOOOO!" Lucario shouted as he shot forward the large sphere of energy towards the frog ninja pokemon.

Greninja pulled back his hand and following his trainer's movements, threw the shuriken forward: " **GGGEEEEEEKKKKOOOOUUUGGGGAAAAA!"**

Both attacks met in the middle of the stadium and stayed there causing a shockwave and the entire battlefield to be covered in a bright light…

Suddenly, the aura sphere dissipated into an explosion that caused a tremendous shock wave that pushed Greninja and Lucario back while sitting up and looking at the tremendous clash of power in the middle of the battlefield. Ash and Ashura looked at the explosion with gleaming eyes, knowing that this was very much it…

Suddenly, through the midst of the bright light: Ash was pretty sure he saw a golden blur reach the other end of the field before the light got so bright and…

" **BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM!"**

 **Guitar solo ends.**

 **At the stands:**

The explosion was so loud and bright that Serena had to grab Kapi and shield herself along with the others next to her. The honey blonde was stressed to the point that she was not expecting the ending to actually put her in danger. Similarly, the others next to her were shielding themselves and any pokemon that they had around, but it seemed to not be enough as even Serena could feel the drastic increase in temperature from the heated collision.

After a while, Serena felt that the situation had calmed down, so she looked up to find that there was a bunch of smoke coming from the middle of the battlefield and the darkness had returned. The scoreboard also flickered on and off a couple of times before finally staying on, but it was clear that the damage may have completely destroyed the battlefield and maybe even the entire stadium's foundation by how the building was rocked around.

"PI! PICHUPI!" Kapi shouted into the quietness with a very desperate tone in her voice.

Serena began to shake in fear for Ash's safety and held her ribbon very tightly with an extremely concerned look on her face.

From his angle, Night also had to back away from the railing to protect himself from the explosion that had happened nowhere near him. From the sound of it, it was almost like an atomic bomb, and clearly he did not want to have to deal with that at all. Still, the explosion sent him and Jolteon a little farther away, but when he got the courage to look back he was not surprised to see the entire battlefield covered in smoke so that nothing was visible. "Oh gosh, please both of them be alright," Night whispered to himself as he looked down at the battlefield.

Professor Sycamore and Diantha had also shielded themselves, but they were disappointed to find out that the smoke had covered the entire battlefield. They stayed silent as they watched the smoke begin to clear, but obviously, it was going to be a close battle, if there even was a winner after that…

 **In Alola:**

Hau and his classmates stayed completely silent as they looked at the screen. Apparently the woman (Malva) narrating the battle had to retreat during the time of the explosion, but as soon as they returned to go back to the scene that was supposed to be the battlefield: The jaws of everyone in the class dropped.

 **At the battlefield:**

Ash looked up from his trainer platform, he had not noticed that Pikachu had come back to his side, and as soon as he noticed it he had enough time to grab the electric type just before the explosion got dangerous. As the smoke cleared, the raven haired trainer looked forward from his place and noticed through the smoke that there was a standing figure in front of him.

"Ninja," Greninja said, still standing to the surprise of the Kanto native trainer.

"Lucario," Lucario said as he stood across from Greninja with the same expression on his face as the latter.

Ash and Ashura both looked with gritted teeth forward waiting to see if anyone would fall…

"Greninja…" Greninja muttered as he fell to his knees while his synchronization with Ash turned into water which landed on the rocky ground below.

Ash also flinched as he fell to his knees as well while gritting his teeth, "Greninja, stay strong buddy…"

"Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted while trying to support his trainer that was on the ground panting hard. Ash then dared look forward towards his father's pokemon, that was still standing as well on his mega form.

"Lucario," Lucario said as he nodded with a… smile? Ash looked at the fighting type with a confused expression until he was in awe watching as Lucario closed his eyes and began to fall forward. "Rio…" Lucario muttered as he lied on the ground unconscious while a swift white glow appeared briefly, removing the mega evolved pokemon from his superior state as well…

At this point, there was only one difference between the two pokemon: Greninja was catching his breath while Lucario was out cold…

Ash's ears could not even comprehend the next couple of words that came from a seemingly immortal referee: "Lucario is unable to battle, which means that Ash Ketchum from Lumiose City is the champion of the Lumiose Conference!"

The stands instantly were inundated with cheers as the scoreboard displayed that Ash was the winner of the match with his face above the word: "Champion!"

Ash then looked up with gleaming eyes as the battlefield turned back into a normal flat ground field and the sun began to shine from above once again.

 **A/N: Aight, there you go, the conclusion of the battling part of the Kalos League and guess what! ASH FRICKING WON!**

 **I guess here is where I said that I enjoyed writing all of these battles, and also, keep in mind that I was not meaning for Greninja vs Lucario to be around 7k words long xD!**

 **Anyways, next time Ash will get his long awaited reward for his amazing skills and you will not want to miss his reaction after his little moment to recollect himself!**

 **Remember to R & R and I hope to see you guys next time!**


	53. Chapter 53

**A/N: Alright, I have an apology to give. I was supposed to release this chapter a LONG time ago, but University took over, and a story that was meant to be concluded months ago is incomplete. I sincerely apologize. Anyways, I guess a conclusion to this story is needed, so here is the last chapter. I hope to see if I can get a sequel out (I have been working on it), but don't expect it any time soon. As always, here goes the last chapter of this story, at least the first installment of it.**

 **Ash did in fact win the Kalos League (in my story) and that is how I planned it. Remember how I also secretly made Serena win the Master Class? Well that is because of the arc that is going to start right after the Kalos League finally concludes after this chapter.**

I hope I did not bore you guys too much with the excessively long chapters, much less the very long battles because I really wanted them to be the most epic in terms of the Kalos League.

 **So, what is next? Well, answers will be revealed in the next couple of chapters as to what is going to happen in the future because the story still needs to continue! Keep in mind that some new characters may appear, but at the same time there may be a lot more appearances by some other people that you guys have already seen in the fic! In fact, you kind of get an idea of how old Night is as well, being somewhat older than Serena, the honey blonde having an ambiguous memory of her brother.**

 **Anyways, I will see you guys at the bottom where I discuss some of the changes for the Kalos League that I had originally planned but I decided to change for some better ideas.**

 **Hope you guys enjoy this chapter now!**

 **Key of Kalos League:**

 **The announcer won't be referenced as the announcer. Any text in italics that is in quotations is the announcer and assume that it can be heard by everyone in the stadium.**

 **League Scoreboard System:**

 **Bold** : In use pokemon/trainer name

 _Italics_ : Fainted pokemon

Underline: Resting pokemon

(Pokeball): Unrevealed pokemon

 **Trainer A:** _Poke1 Poke2 Poke3 Poke4_ Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Trainer B:** _Poke1 Poke2_ (Pokeball) Poke4 Poke5 **Poke6 (Active one)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own pokemon**

Chapter 53- Kalos League Finale! Passion that Burns Forever!

 **At the battlefield:**

Ash was panting on his knees as he waited to see what the call would be, and when it came, it was not what he was expecting at all…

The referee raised his hand as he saw Lucario's state in Ashura's side of the battlefield as he then declared the victor of the match: "Lucario is unable to battle, which means that Ash Ketchum from Lumiose City is the champion of the Lumiose Conference!"

" _Unbelievable! And one of our favorites manages to defeat the strong and talented Satoshi to win the entire league! This was one of the best matches I have ever seen in all of my time narrating over the entire Kalos League!"_

"Pikapika!" shouted as he was the first from the trainer's platform to go check on Greninja, who was sitting up in the ground breathing hard. "Pikachu!" Pikachu greeted as he hugged the frog ninja pokemon.

Greninja looked down and smiled under his scarf while trying not to collapse from the damage he had taken from the large explosion, "Ninja…" He then reached out and petted the electric mouse with a very gentle motion while trying to ignore the fact that everyone was cheering for him around him.

Ash could not even believe what he was hearing as he took a deep breath and then smiled, ignoring the pain he was feeling, but also trying to ignore the fact that his clothes probably got completely smoked during the last part of the battle. "ALRIGHT!" Ash shouted with glee as he then jumped off the trainer's platform and within seconds reached his two pokemon friends. "We did it guys! Our hard work has finally payed off as a team… I can't be anymore proud of you guys." Ash contain himself as he hugged his pokemon ignoring how childish it looked to everyone that were cheering him on for once.

On the other side of the field, Ashura had a slightly shocked look as he looked towards the battlefield. It then hit him that it was just another defeat that he would have to learn from and move on. Ashura smiled as he adjusted his cap and took a deep breath while walking onto the field to check on his Lucario. "Lucario, you were excellent," Ashura said gently as he kneeled down and put a hand over the fighting and steel type's head, feeling the nice soft fur. Looking at the body of the aura pokemon, he noticed that he had burn marks all over while also being soaked. Ashura then realized it was probably by the large water shuriken, but that didn't matter now: It was time to make it right and hope that Ash understood.

"Lucario…" Lucario muttered as he began to sit up, but then winced feeling pain on his back.

"Lucario take it easy," The older trainer said as he helped him stand up to his feet.

"Rio…"

"Lucario, you did your best and I am grateful for that, so don't feel so bad that you didn't win," Ashura replied as he looked forward and watched as Ash helped Greninja up to his feet. "I remember when we were in his shoes, Charizard, Aero, Pika, and you were there too."

"Lucario," Lucario replied with a very genuine smile appearing on the fighting type's figure, although it seemed kind of crooked because of all the pain that the fighting type had gone through recently.

 **Serena's house:**

"Fletch, fletchling!" Fletchling chanted as he flew around Grace's living room, cheering with glee after seeing such an amazing and hard fought battle.

Grace was having trouble keeping her tea from splashing and falling onto the floor, "Fletchling, I know you are excited, but just cut it out!" The tiny robin pokemon calmed down before then perching himself on Grace's shoulder and letting out a small apology. "It's alright, but I do understand why you are so hyped up! That battle had me at the edge of my seat too!" Grace looked at Ash's face with his pokemon and smiled: "Looks like Serena has a good eye for very good men in this world."

"Fletch?" Fletchling asked the brunette with large golden earrings with a confused expression to which the woman then smiled.

"If only Tony were here to see this, he would be so psyched to see such an amazing battle," Grace muttered while putting a hand over her heart. "Tony, where are you dear?" The woman said with a very quiet tone that even her flying type could not even hear.

 **In Alola:**

Hau looked at the screen with utter amazement as he stood up and threw his fist into the air: "YES! Ash won!"

"Jeeze," Kiawe said as he stood up from behind the green haired trainer. "Although the battle had an epic ending, you don't need to be so loud."

Lana just sat in her desk quietly before she then decided to speak up on what she thought of the battle: "I think that Ash was amazing for having such a powerful water type pokemon like that Greninja." She then looked around and noticed that Mallow was sneaking glances at Hau before snapping her out of blissful thoughts. "Mallow, what did you think?"

"Huh?" Mallow asked as she grew a luminescent blush that extended through the bridge of her nose. Still, she was so startled that she caught the attention of everyone before then pulling herself together. "I thought that Ash did a very fabulous job, and now that the battle is over, let's celebrate with some malasadas!"

"YES! Mallow you are the best!" Hau exclaimed while getting all hyped up. Everyone in the room except Mallow sweatdropped hearing how enthusiastic the trainer with the Incineroar was about having the sweet treat.

Mallow looked at Hau going on and on about malasadas while smiling. 'He is back to when he was before Lillie had that accident. Welcome back Hau…'

"Malasadas? I think I could be down for that!"

Everyone flinched when they heard the new voice pierce the atmosphere. It was a new voice for the time being, but it was also one that had not been heard in such a long time. The voice could be described as angelic and gentle with a lot of innocence, but something to everyone was different: It was a more confident voice now.

Everyone in the room turned to the source of the voice, which was the doorway: Standing there was a girl who was tall and with pale skin. Her dress was white and had two flaps by the neck area that dangled down to her chest. Her shoes were somewhat athletic, but also the same color as her dress. To the others, she seemed somewhat unrecognizable by her very pale teal hair that seemed short to only go up to her shoulders and her eyes being a cyan color, but nobody would have forgotten her gentle nature and voice.

Suddenly, the response of everyone in the room was:

"LILLIE!"

 **At the stands of the Kalos League stadium:**

"No way, Ash won! HE WON!" Bonnie shouted as she stood up while pumping her fists and looking in her bag. "Dedenne, Squishy! He won! Ash won!"

Dedenne poked his head out and began cheering along with the green small Zygarde core that was also cheering while looking at the battlefield. Clemont had to make sure that his sister would not overreact or else she would fall into the rows of seats in front of her, but the excitement in the lemon blonde gym leader's head was also topped at that point: His friend had just won the Kalos League and he had just witnessed probably the most amazing battle in his life.

Brock looked at the battlefield and at the raven haired trainer, who was with his two aces, seemingly exhausted, but also feeling powered by his adrenaline and oxytocin, which were obviously the reason for this new found energy. The Pewter City gym leader smiled and whispered to himself: "Ash, you truly are the pride of Pallet Town, you have made everyone proud, even the people back home."

Calem and Shauna were both clapping along with Tierno and Trevor, all four of them seemingly could not have been happier for Ash as they wished him their support for the future, although something in the jet black haired trainer itched him to have another battle with Ash, something just made having a spar with him more amazing now. "Good job Ash," Calem muttered under his breath as he looked forward.

Mairin was nearly crying with tears of joy as she saw her idol celebrating with his pokemon. "He was so amazing! Chespie that was just awesome!"

"Ches! Chespin!" Chespie replied as he looked at his trainer and smiled. Seeing Mairin like this made the grass quil pokemon very happy, especially through everything that the redheaded girl had gone through lately.

Looking at Serena, one would expect that she was a going through a tough time comprehending what had just happened because she kept her head down while shadowing her eyes. Looking at her hands, they were above her ribbon while seemingly crushing the area around the blue fabric with her hands. As she rose her head, one could see her eyes crystallizing in the sunlight as her hair shone brightly. Tears streamed down her cheeks, not in sadness, but in happiness: She had actually accomplished what she had promised herself which was to get Ash to the top with her support. She could see it in the way the raven haired trainer was battling today, he had times where he lost hope, but he kept going through it all and pushed through everything: _He did not give up, he held on until the very end-_ no… He held on until he won the title. It was heartwarming for the honey blonde girl, but at the same time, she felt like throughout the battle, her heart was picked up, ripped apart and thrown against the walls of her chest, but in the end of it all, it was alright, because her heart rate finally was coming back down and it was blazing with passion as well.

 **At the battlefield:**

Ash smiled as he petted Pikachu's fur and stroked Greninja's head, the frog ninja pokemon had some burn marks all over his body and it was clear that he had definitely been caught up in the firepower of that explosion while still being able to hold on in a pinch. "You guys were great, I wish that I could take the others out of their pokeballs, but that would be dangerous right now," Ash remarked as he stood back up with Greninja and him holding each other up. It was true what Ash had said now that he thought about it clearer: Sceptile was severely burned, Noivern was covered in ice, Goodra had been shocked a lot while also being hit with his own draco meteor, and Charizard had plummeted to the ground from such a great height. Ash was proud of them though, without the injuries, scratches, and status conditions that were endured, nothing would have been possible.

"Ash," Ash turned to see his father walking up to him with Lucario and Pika next to him, the fighting type also supporting himself off of his trainer due to the severe damage that he had taken throughout the battle. Seeing his father, the raven haired trainer stood up straighter along with Greninja mimicking his trainer's actions. "Thank you for such an amazing battle, I truly enjoyed it," Ashura said with a somewhat of a sad smile as he extended his hand. He had felt as if his son had not understood the message that he was trying to convey through the battle: His apology for pretty much about everything that was haunting his son for the last couple of years.

"Dad…" Ash said as he let go of Greninja and went to shake his father's hand only for him to hesitate. It was that moment where something sparked inside of the raven haired trainer's heart that caused him to charge forward and give his father a hug, a motion that left Ashura taken aback, but he smiled and returned the gesture knowing that he had nothing to worry about, his son had made it through everything that had stood in his way for such a long time. " _I forgive you_ ," Ash whispered barely audible to even himself, but Ashura heard it, he heard it clearer than a horn inside of the quietest room in the world.

"Thank you," The older Kantonian whispered as he released himself from the grip of his son. The mission was complete, he managed to battle his son and get his apology through him at the expense of probably one of the hardest battles for both him and his son.

The crowd cheered loudly seeing the sportsmanship being displayed by both trainers. In the end of it all, it was just an embrace of two trainers that are happy after finishing their hard fought battle. Not only that, it was clear that both competitors had been more emotionally connected than anyone could have thought, clearly the father and son relationship stuck out to everyone.

 **At the stands:**

Malva was reporting over the battle itself with her camera crew in front of her, "Both trainers now show that there are no winners or losers, but the smiles of those that knew that they gave it everything they had out there and proved that they deserved their spot in that stage." The camera crew smiled as well as the blazing styled woman then finished her report: "Now that we know that Ash has won the finals of the Kalos League, he will be coronated by the champion herself after we take a short break for both trainers to rest and for everyone who came to enjoy the finals to also take a breather after such a heated exchange of attacks."

Soon after that statement, the people started to file out of the stadium through their own doors, the same with the trainers in the arena. Night looked at Jolteon and both of them decided to go through the door behind them although they were running, they just wanted to get to Ashura and talk to him. Night and Jolteon quickly went down the stairs and towards the area of the dugouts to find that Ashura was walking towards him. "Red!"

"I told you to stop calling me that," Ashura replied as he sighed and looked at the spiky haired trainer before looking back in front of him towards the end of the hallway. "Anyways, in case you were wondering, that was one of the best battles of my life, I gave it my all and that is all that matters for me."

Night flinched at this as he narrowed his eyes, "You are alright with losing despite being known as an incredibly strong trainer able to surpass many opponents?" Night asked before them gripping his hair with his hands. "What about any mistakes to made that you might have to learn from to become a better trainer and all that?"

The silence between both individuals lasted for about five seconds before the raven haired champion let out a slight chuckle and began to walk past his colleague, but while doing so, he stopped right in front of the blue attired trainer. "Don't think less of someone at all: A strategy change might be all one needs because sometimes perfect strategies fail even if no mistakes were made." Ashura then began to walk forward with a smirk hidden and his eyes shadowed by the darkness of the dimly lit hallway. "To reach one's goal, one might have to change technique once, but that is acceptable because it shows how dynamic and persistent someone is to reach his ultimate dream."

Night flinched as he looked back towards where the person he was just talking to went: Ashura was gone now, meaning it was clear that he had to find out what his next step was… What his next adventure would be. Sure, he might have wanted to go back to the Rankor Islands and taken challenges with his pokemon, but then he realized that he wanted to go on an adventure, something he had not done in a while even if it was a small one.

Taking a step forward, Night then saw a piece of paper on the ground and picked it up. Seeing the text written on it, he recognized it as Ashura's handwriting. It took a second to read the paper, but when he finished he stuffed the paper into his pocket and looked down at his pokemon with determined eyes, "Jolteon…"

"Jolteon?" Jolteon asked while looking up at his trainer.

The spiky haired teenager took a deep breath as he looked forward and then looked down at the concrete floor, taking in the details of the gray material. "Will you help me with this next challenge?"

Jolteon cocked his head at this, it was obvious that it was another adventure he could have with his trainer, but this probably meant that it would be dangerous.

Night then looked down at his pokemon and smiled sadly, " _Will you help me bring back my father?_ " Jolteon flinched at this, but with a determined glance accepted the offer kindly while nudging himself in the teenager's leg. Night smiled as he kneeled down and petted his Jolteon before then frowning. "I can't do this alone... " Jolteon then looked up at him with a very confused expression to which Night narrowed his eyes. "I am going to see if I can get my _sister_ to help me."

Meanwhile with the gang, they were exiting the stadium just like everyone else was towards the pokemon center, where Brock suggested they went to meet up with Ash because it was obvious he would have to heal up his pokemon. Calem lead the way with Shauna, Trevor, and Tierno while Brock stayed next to Mairin, Clemont and Bonnie which left Serena in the back by herself reflecting on what she had just witnessed. Her heart fluttered knowing that the person she wanted to win the Kalos League actually managed to pull it off with his trust in his team. Looking around in the huge crowd of people that were crowding outside the stadium was strenuous, especially when the honey blonde was looking for the raven haired trainer.

"Chu pi!" Kapi exclaimed from Serena's shoulder, the young performer having forgotten that she had let out her female electric rodent too. As soon as the blue eyed trainer looked around to see if she could find a sign of Ash, she noticed a red cap poking out from a crowd surrounding it. Instantly, she began to run towards the middle of the large crowd, pushing through people to then find the boy with Z marks in his cheeks looking around somewhat confused. People screamed things like "congratulations" and you could also see a group of people that had cameras even questioning him like a celebrity.

Ash looked around with Pikachu and in shoulder before he noticed Serena in the large crowd and went wide eyed. "Serena!" He shouted as he began to run towards the honey blonde.

"Ash- Wait what are you doing?" Serena asked in shock as she felt her hand being pulled by his fingerless glove shielded hand.

The raven haired trainer looked at her and smiled, "Let's get out of here before this becomes a mess." Both of them maneuvered around the massive group of people before they finally made it back to the pokemon center where everyone was staying, in fact the gang was waiting for Ash and Serena by the doorway as they arrived there. "Hey guys!" the Kanto native said with a very casual tone while trying to not sound excited: Sure he was exploding with happiness inside, but letting it out would probably not be so appropriate for Mairin and Bonnie… And if he looked at Serena for any longer than he had already been since this morning, then everyone would get an eyeful of his extending- 'Let's not go there,' Ash told himself as he looked at the other's reactions.

"ASH!" Everyone exclaimed as they surrounded the boy filling him with compliments and praise for his amazing battle. Bonnie in particular was enthusiastic about something as she narrowed her eyes.

Bonnie then exploded in cheers and shouted: "Looks like Ash did not just win the Kalos League!"

Ash and Serena both went wide eyed completely forgetting that their hands were still together and at the same time they pulled away and grew a red tint in their cheeks as they tried to act natural. The honey blonde was especially disappointed as she had been enjoying the moment, her feelings were actually being reciprocated after- 'Let's not go there,' Serena sighed as she sighed and looked at the raven haired trainer, who was walking towards Nurse Joy and putting his five pokeballs in the rack while putting Pikachu down on the stretcher and petting the electric rodent's head.

"Did something happen?" Shauna inched closer to Serena from the side which freaked out the young performer.

Serena blushed wildly while looking away and grabbed her ribbon, "No, nothing happened at all."

"You seem a little suspicious," Shauna said as she then walked past Serena and made her way towards Calem, who was talking with Tierno and Trevor while Clemont and Brock watched Mairin and Bonnie play together with Chespie, Dedenne, and Squishy.

Serena took a deep breath and sat down near Clemont and Brock, who she overheard talking about something to do with cooking a feast for Ash while people walked in and out of the establishment while congratulating the raven haired trainer in his victory. Of course, it was soon going to be time to get the Kalos League trophy that Diantha would present to the new champion.

Looking down, the honey blonde haired girl frowned: What was next? She got everything out of her to-do list: 1) Perform in the Masterclass… Check, 2) Get Ash to the top of the Kalos League… Check, 3) Confess to Ash that you like him… Sorta Check, it was too early to tell. Still, what was her next step? Would she change her goal and try something else? Try the Masterclass again? Maybe even rewrite this entire list would have been a good idea at the time as the young performer smiled and looked up while reaching to her shoulder and petting the electric rodent. "Kapi, are you excited to see Pikachu after he comes back?"

"PICHU!" Kapi shouted with glee as her eyes beamed brightly.

From the entrance of the pokemon center, the blue and black attired trainer with his Jolteon looked at the honey blonde and frowned. "How am I going to do this?" The spiky electric type looked back up at his trainer with an uncertain face, but the teenager just turned around and said, "I have to go somewhere first."

"Jolteon," Jolteon replied with a somewhat confused tone before following his trainer farther into the distance. Night was going to go reunite with someone that he had yet to see since he left on his journey when his sister was just a small girl that knew him as _Ezra_.

 **In Lumiose City:**

"Pawniard?" A small steel type pokemon with bandages covering his bladed body walked around the city. He was looking around the city and watching the many people go around him in all directions. People, mostly little kids, stopped to greet the small steel type, but the later fled the scene every time that happened. As soon as Pawniard reached battlefield where stairs lead down to the actual arena, he stepped onto the dirt and narrowed his eyes. Looking forward, he charged while spreading out his arms, after that he crossed them in front of his face to develop purple blades. "NIARD!" Pawniard shouted as he uncrossed his arms and made an X like shape in front of himself appear. "Pawni…" He instantly winced as he fell to his knees and panted hard while grabbed his right arm with his left. He was still hurt and trying to practice his moves was definitely going to be more trouble than he ever thought.

Pawniard suddenly turned his head in the direction of people coming near the television screen that was displayed in front of one of the stores that were nearby. Going up the stairs and pushing through people's legs to get to what everyone was watching, it showed the hexagonal stadium where a boy with raven hair and a bright blue scarf was in front of a woman with a white dress, about to receive a bright gold trophy. "Pawniard…" Pawniard looked on with shining eyes watching as the trainer and his Pikachu were about to hold onto the trophy in front of them.

 **At the stadium:**

" _ASH ASH ASH!"_

That was the sound that the raven haired trainer heard as he walked out from the tunnel followed by his six pokemon behind him. All of them headed from the trainer's platform and into the new platform that was the battlefield. His friends went back to the stands and he could probably hear them all calling down to him with their loud and proud voices. "Pikachu!" Pikachu cried from the raven haired trainer's shoulder which caused him to chuckle.

"You did great Pikachu," Ash said as he reached Diantha and Professor Sycamore, who had the trophy right next to them in a platform. Turning around and petting his electric mouse, Ash turned to his other pokemon: "You guys were also amazing, thank you for your hard work!"

"GRUAW!"

"TILE!"

"VERN!"

"DRA!"

"NINJA!"

All of his pokemon threw a fist in the air which made Ash laugh as he then turned his attention to the woman in front of him. "Ash," Diantha started as she began to give the raven haired trainer the bright and glittering trophy next to her. "You have created a strong bond with you and your pokemon, and for your display of strength, courage, persistence, perseverance, and creativity," At the last part Ash chuckled under his breath as it was directed towards his battle style. Diantha then let go of the trophy on the raven haired trainer's hands and smiled as she stepped back, "For all of that, I applaud you, and have given you the qualification to compete in the champion's league that will be held in the Rankor Islands."

Ash could not believe it, in his hands was a hard piece of metal that was shining in his face. The imprintation of " _Ash Ketchum, Champion of the Kalos League"_ made him smile, but it was his pokemon he had to thank for the hard work they did. The Kanto native then looked back up towards the champion of Kalos and smiled with shining eyes as he said the next part: "Diantha, thank you so much."

At that very moment the entire stadium burst into cheers following the acceptance of the raven haired trainer's trophy. The fact that there was such a courageous battler that went through hard work in order to get to where he is today clearly allowed for Kalos- no, anyone that was paying attention to the Kalos League welcome Ash to be their champion as well.

"Guys, let's share this victory together, as a team," The raven haired trainer said as he turned around and set the trophy on the floor so that his six pokemon could look at it. Ash put his hand out first, his fingerless glove with the glistening keystone then getting covered by a yellow paw, followed by a green claw and a blood red claw as well that was then followed by orange claws and a blue webbed hand. The last one to put his hand out was Goodra, who was slimy and covered everyone's hand in slime, the pokemon and Ash smiled at it, yes it was weird, but the slime was kind of like the glue that kept the group together, the bond that was shared between everyone.

"TEAM!"

"PIKACHU!"

"SCEPTILE!"

"GOODRA!"

"GRUAW!"

"GRENINJA!"

Everyone shouted at the same time as they raised their hands high into the sky, and a view looking up from the trophy's spot showed the limbs reaching out and covering the sun above while casting a shadow, clearly meaning that they were going to keep going.

"Ash," The raven haired trainer's voice was cut out by a voice he recognized. Looking back down from the platform he was he saw his father smiling up at him. "Congratulations, you did well." Ash was wide eyed with his mouth agape as he heard this, despite everything that he had gone through in the past, his internal conflict was finally being solved for the better. All he could do at that moment was smile.

 **At the stands:**

Serena held her ribbon with a bright smile that radiated to her red tinged cheeks. She could barely believe that it was happening, sure he had just won the league, but the thought of how it finally turned out a reality was what made her happiest. Everyone else was also happy for Ash, their friend had finally come home with a victory for them, specially Calem as he clapped on for his friend. He knew that it was not over and that there were more adventures to come.

Malva on the other hand looked down at the field with excitement as she said a couple of words towards the camera. People all over the stands were cheering for Ash and it was definitely a very loud cheering that everyone had to endure.

 **With the Elite Four:**

"So it looks like Ash has won the league," Siebold said as he sat back in his chair. The water type trainer looked forward with excitement. "This is truly fascinating, he has a fancy Greninja that I cannot wait to battle during his challenge."

Dransa snickered as she looked at the blonde, "You are kidding me, right?" Siebold and Winkstorm looked at the elderly woman with a very confused look. "He is going to challenge the Champion's League in the Rankor Islands, that is where we will know just how strong he really is."

Siebold groaned while Winkstorm looked back at the television screen. "I understand what you mean Dransa. The Champion's League is going to be a real challenge for him to overcome, judging by the fact that all of the winners from the conferences of other regions will be there." With that the three Elite Four members looked on towards the screen watching on until the end of the ceremony.

 **That night:**

Ash was sitting by himself in the light of the stars that formed a blanket of Kalos while looking towards the city of lights in front of him. He was sitting on the side of the same tree where talked to Hau a couple days ago, of course it seemed like a long time for him because of how much has happened since then. Pikachu and the rest of his Pokemon were at his hotel room, where there was a big feast just a couple of hours ago to commemorate his win. In his hands he held the trophy he won while studying it. It shined, yet that was all it did, it was just a piece of metal that he was given for being able to win his battles. Ash sighed as he heard a twig crack behind him.

"Dad if that's you, I know you're there," Ash said into the air while he noticed the presence of someone next to him.

Ashura snickered as he sat down next to his son, "What are you now? A ninja? Anyways, that trophy is not just a solid object, it represents the bond that you share with your Pokemon, the way that you worked hard to be able to reach this stage in your life. It is also your ticket to the Champion's League."

The raven haired trainer looked to the trophy in front of him at that moment, "The Champion's League, huh?"

"You said it yourself, the Kalos League is where the strongest trainers in Kalos go, but this is different, this is for the strongest trainers in the entire world," Ashura then made a pause. "I decided to challenge the Elite Four and the Champion of Kanto instead, but I feel like with the path you want to pursue, you should give it a try and then decide if you want to take on the Elite Four and Champion of Kalos as well."

"I understand," Ash said as he stood up along with his father. "So what about now, where are you headed off to?"

Ash's father took a deep breath and looked off into Lumiose City, "I am going back to a place that I consider home: Pallet Town." Ash went agape as his father kept speaking. "I want to go somewhere to take a break from my traveling for once in a long while… Also," Ashura took a deep breath as he then looked back at his son, "I want to be somewhere where you can find me at any time, so don't be afraid to give me a call every once in awhile."

Ash nodded at the proposal and smiled, "Don't worry dad, you can count on me to keep you updated on what is going on!"

Ashura then flinched and reached into his backpack to grab something: It was a capsule that was then opened to reveal a light brown egg with green leaf marks around it. "I wanted to give this to you, as a congratulations gift."

Ash took the capsule in his hands and looked at it, "It's so nice, thank you."

Ashura smiled as he adjusted his cap, "It is close to hatching and I know that he will be a strong one too." Ash smiled as he watched his father take out a Pokeball that revealed his Dragonite. "Ash, I am going to go home now, it was great seeing you again, don't forget to call me."

"Wait!" Ash shouted as he ran up to his father that was getting on his dragon type pokemon. "Take this home with you, so that you can keep it safe," Ash said as he handed the trophy to his father.

"Wise choice, it does become a burden to carry around, doesn't it?" Ashura joked as he put the trophy in his sac. "It is in good hands, I will set it somewhere nice so that you can come back and see it any time you would like," Ashura assured. "Anyways, for now this is good-bye."

Ash smiled as he watched his father take off into the air, "Good-bye dad, I promise I will call you!" The raven haired trainer then sighed as he put the egg in his backpack. "A goodbye is just a promise to see each other again, to be able to see how much we have grown after a while of being apart and to renew our relationship in a new way possible."

Ash looked out into the night sky with his hand extended to make a fist which reflected in his bright brown eyes. "I will keep going, and I won't give up until the very- no… I won't give up ever!" The scene the zoomed out and into the night sky where it appeared to be going towards the moon, only for the scene to begin to dim…

 **In a dark place:**

Lysandre looked pleased as he watched the boy in front of him that was encapsulated in a white cage. The boy was pale with closed eyes and white shiny dangling hair. His sweater is gray, but has fire patterns coming from the bottom to then extend towards the top. Lysandre watched as his assistant Xerosic administered a fluid into the capsule. "Our ultimate project will soon be complete, now all we need is a little power from Zygarde, and that is all we will need to strengthen him."

"Yes," Lysandre replied as he smirked and looked forward. His scar extending through the side of his face. "Very soon we will complete the operation and we shall make him the strongest."

The scene then positions itself in front of the capsule, where the teenager is while the view goes darker and darker until there is nothing left…

 **To Be Continued...**


End file.
